A Tale of Two Monsters
by WillWork4Bacon
Summary: "They would never love you if they knew what you really were." The same thought that ran through two minds of the two people only a room apart.
1. That Day

"Nyu!" She protested with her only real word as Kouta tried to put her to bed.

"Nyu, stop kicking. You were just ill and you need rest." Kouta fought with her to get her to stay still. She was like a child fighting their bed time. He finally managed to hold her down long enough for her to calm down. He took the bed sheets and covered her up. "There, now go to sleep. You need to rest."

"Kouta!" She called out. "I like Kouta!" She cried out smiling at him. He smiled back down at her.

"I like you too Nyu." He pet her on the head between her horns. "Now get some sleep. I'll see you tomorrow." He said his goodnight before turning off the lights in her room and shutting the door behind him. Nyu began to drift off to sleep on after. In her dreams, she was once again Lucy. She was lying down in the middle of a cold icy blackness, thoughts of Kouta running through her head.

_He would never love you if he knew what you really were._ Her inner voice taunted her. She knew it was right too. Kouta couldn't possibly forgive her for what she did, if he knew what she really was he would never love her. She was hopeless, it was better if she wasn't herself. Maybe then she could finally be happy.

Back in the real world, Kouta made his way to his room right after saying goodnight to Nyu. He could hear Yuka down the hall showing Nana her room. He was still a little miffed at her for attacking Nyu out of the blue like that, but if Nyu could forgive her so could he. Nana was a tenant at this house now, he couldn't just kick her out to the curb like that. So he would allow her to stay at the Maple Inn with everyone else. When he got to his room, he immediately shut the door behind him. He sat down right at the door and buried his face in his hands. "_She would never love you if she knew what you really were._" He thought to himself, hot tears starting to stream down his face. "_You monster._" His thoughts got to him. He couldn't let her know the truth, he couldn't let her know what he really was. He raised up his head from his hands, tears still covered his cheeks. His left eye was now a kakugan. He had to calm down, he riled himself up. He took a deep breath and exhaled. He reverted his left eye back to its normal state. No one in that house could know the truth. He buried his face in his knees and reminisced. He would never forget that day.

That day over a year ago...

* * *

Kouta was sitting alone at a coffee shop in Tokyo. He was supposed to be meeting with an adviser there for college. He had just taken his entrance exams, but had scored fairly low. He was currently living in Tokyo taking any work he could find. He was put in a state sponsored self-living program. He had spent year after year moving between foster homes after the death of his father and sister. Now he was finally learning how to live on his own in a small apartment. He was starting to really stress about college after taking the exams. But through word down the grapevine he heard about a woman who acted as a college adviser for students unsure of what to do with their future. He decided to look her up and hire her. They exchanged a few emails and decided to meet at this coffee shop, Anteiku. It was a small modest place with the scent of coffee filling the air. He waited at a small table for two people, the seat across from him empty. He looked down at his phone and sighed. She was late. He put his phone back in his pocket. A waitress came over to the table he was at. She was a girl around his age with short dark black hair with a bluish tint. She had it styled so that it partially covered the right side of her face.

"Hello sir, can I get you anything?" She asked him.

"Ah, just some water please. Thanks." He responded with a smile. She nodded and went to get him a glass of water. He began to wonder how long he would wait for her. He stopped wondering that when he saw someone took a seat at the table. She had finally arrived, his college adviser Rize. She too was around his age, but with long flowing deep purple hair and red rimmed glasses.

"Hi there, sorry for being late." She apologized with a smile. "It's good to finally meet you in person Kouta."

"Nice to meet you too Rize." He responded with a smile. The waitress brought Kouta's glass to the table, then noticed Rize had joined him. Rize shot her a quick glance and a smile.

"Ah, hello Touka. I'd like a cup of coffee please." She greeted the waitress who she clearly knew.

"Sure, coming right up." Touka responded to her, going to get one cup of coffee for her.

"You know our waitress?" Kouta asked her.

"Yep, I come here all the time. Best place to grab a cup of coffee in the area. You should try some."

"Ah, no thanks." He responded, holding up his hand. "I'm not really a coffee person."

"Oh, I see." She responded in a rather playful manner. "Anyway, down to business." She pulled a tablet out of her messenger bag and handed it to Kouta. "Here's a list of different universities and schools that you are at least 80% guaranteed to get into based on my calculations. Take a look through and tell me what catches your attention." Kouta scrolled down through the list of schools. They were nothing special of course, he couldn't get into anything like that. There were very few even basic level schools on that last. He did find one that stood out though.

"Oh, this one." He tapped on the tab for it and gave the tablet back to Rize. She looked at it with confusion.

"Huh, but this is just a safety school. There are better schools in the country on this list so why choose this one?"

"The location." He replied with a smile. "It's in Kamakura, I have family in Kamakura."

"Oh I see, close to home huh?" She asked with a smile of her own while doing some more things on her tablet. Touka came over with Rize's coffee and handed it to her. "Thanks." She told her with a smile before taking a sip.

"Well, I guess. I'm actually from Hokkaido but I have an aunt and cousin in Kamakura."

"So a family reunion is it?"

"Yeah, I haven't seen them in 8 years."

"8 years? Why so long?" She asked.

"Oh..." She noticed he suddenly seemed to get a lot more serious and somber. "I don't remember much about it, but we visited for awhile in summer. But not long after that my father died in a car crash. Then my little sister got very sick and passed away. Things really turned into hell for me around then."

"Oh... i'm sorry, I didn't mean to pry." She sounded apologetic.

"No, it's fine." He smiled but his tone changed little. "I'm pretty over it now. So, do you think I could get into that school?"

"Well according to my calculations there's about a 96% chance you'll get accepted so i'd think so." She tried to brighten the mood.

"Really? That's great!" He replied, now starting to sound like himself again.

"Mhmm, i'll get in contact with the administration and get you in. I suppose that means you'll also have to move."

"Yeah, but it'll be nice to go back to Kamakura again." He replied.

"Well then you have a lot to look forward too." They spent the next hour or so chatting away and discussing Kouta's new school. Until eventually...

"Oh my, would you look at the time." Rize noted. "It's dark already."

"Oh yeah, it is." Kouta noted, turning to look out a window. "Well it was great meeting you."

"You too Kouta, but..." She trailed off. "If you don't mind me asking where do you live exactly?"

"Oh, an apartment complex deeper in the city." He replied, a bit surprised by her question. "Why do you ask?"

"Haven't you heard? There's a killer around this area." She told him, her look becoming most serious.

"A... a killer?" Kouta stammered.

"Yeah, whoever it is they leave little of their victims behind." Kouta was starting to turn pale. "I'll tell you what, it's safer if we go together. I'll walk you back to your apartment." She got up from her chair.

"Oh, well thanks. I really appreciate it." He thanked her as he stood up too.

"Bye everybody!" Rize waved to the staff. Kouta looked back one last time, and something caught his eye. Their waitress was giving him a rather strange look. It wasn't exactly pity but... it was as if she knew something terrible was going to happen to them. Kouta was a bit confused by her glance at first but thought nothing more of it and left the store with Rize. It was about a half hour walk back to his apartment, and the air was a bit chilly for that time of the year. Kouta kept looking around nervously, scared by the news of a vicious killer her heard from Rize. But if they did get attacked their chances of survival were better as a group. On the way back, they passed a construction site where a commercial office building was being built. Rize suddenly got closer to him.

"It sure is a lovely night." She told him with a smile.

"Yeah I guess. Though you can't exactly see the stars well." He commented and she laughed. She suddenly grabbed his arm above the elbow making him stop in his tracks.

"You know... I had a really great time back there." She told him a flirtatious tone.

"Uhh, me too." He replied. He started to blush when she leaned in closer to him.

"You smell nice." She told him, leaning in closer. He started to really turn red when she brought her head next to him and her mouth close to his neck. Then he suddenly felt a sharp pain on his shoulder. He pulled back and found out he was bleeding. He was bleeding a lot actually, blood started to gush out from his wound. He was wearing a jacket too, so something ripped through his jacket and into his arm. Rize started to laugh. He looked at her, still confused and stunned. What just happened? Why was he bleeding? His questions were answered she he saw her face. There was blood on her mouth, his blood. There was also a bit of his black jacket in her mouth that she spit out on the ground. But what really surprised him were her eyes. They were now red and black. "Good enough to eat." She told him in a sinister tone.

"Wh-what's going on? What are you?" He asked in a state of panic.

"Oh you don't need to worry about that Kouta. You need to worry about what's going to happen to you." She was giving him a huge grin. He panicked, he didn't know what was going on and he was in pain. He clutched his wound and ran into the skeleton structure of the building. His plan was to try and run away, to try and shake her off. He just ran, no clue where he was going but he took off. He saw light on the other side of the structure, maybe if he got to that she would go away. But he never made it. Something ripped through the air and cut him in his lower abdomen on the right side. He fell down from the pain and started bleeding even worse. He turned around to Rize was about a meter and a half from him. But now there was something else about her. Four bright red tentacle like appendages coming from her back. They almost seemed to glow, and one of them had blood on it.

"Wh-what the hell is going on?" He asked panicked.

"Do you like them? They're my claws used to kill my prey. That would be you Kouta." He was in a state of full panic. She wasn't human, she was a monster. She was a monster and she was going to kill him. He managed to crawl back from her and hit a wall. He climbed up it and managed to get to his feet. She was closing in on him. She was now close enough to grab him. "Now be a good boy, and just die!" She wound her arm back to punch straight through him. Although he was weak from blood loss his adrenaline gave him enough reaction time to get out of the way. He jumped sideways and landed on the ground. He managed to dodge her attack, but what next? She could probably still use her 'claws' and kill him from there. He closed his eyes and waited for his fate. Pictures of his family flashing through his mind. His father, Kanae... his cousin Yuka who he had hoped to see. Instead, he heard Rize scream. He turned on his back to see what was happening. Rize had missed him but punched right into a 200 amp service box. High voltage and amperage ran through her body, the pain of being electrocuted made her scream. The temporary lights around the sight began to dim as the power was directed into her body. Her kagune spasmed behind her in air thrashing about everywhere. After several seconds all the lights powered by the box exploded and Rize was pushed back from an explosion in the box itself. But it was too late for her, she was fried. She fell back and drew her last breath on the ground, he skin blackened in large patches all over her body. Kouta watched all this in horror. He just saw someone die in front of him. He sat there motionless in a mix of fear and shock before falling down himself due to his wounds. He lie there bleed profusely, thinking that it was the end for him. He slowly closed his eyes as everything went black.

Not long after though, two security guards came into the structure. The explosion had caused a stir among the people living nearby and there were many reports of it. The two guards were armed with flashlights to see in the darkness after the lights exploded. "Hey, over here!" One called to the other, he found the body of Rize and Kouta who was still alive but bleeding profusely. His life was in danger if he didn't get some immediate attention. "Call an ambulance." He ordered. Within minutes an ambulance was at the scene and rushed Kouta and Rize to the hospital. She was pronounced dead on arrival, and Kouta was in need of immediate surgery. He needed a kidney transplant stat. Rize's did't seemed to burned up, so the doctor decided to just use that since it's what he had. Kouta would spend the next couple of weeks in the hospital, and on that day everything changed for him.


	2. Can't go back

It was an early Saturday afternoon when Yuka was in the house with her mother. Only the two of them lived there, Kouta's mother and her father were both killed in a car accident when Kouta and her were very little. The two of them were brother and sister and went to visit a sick relative farther south. On the way home, a drunk driver sped past a red light and t-boned them. Their car spun out of control and flipped over in a ditch. They were both pronounced dead on arrival when they got to the hospital. Yuka's mother had been taking care of her ever since then. Poor Kouta lost his father and little sister too. She hadn't seen him in 7 years and often dreamed about meeting with him again. She was sitting down at the table reading a book while her mother was cleaning dishes from breakfast. "So Yuka, have you started looking at colleges yet?" Her mother asked.

"Mhmm." Yuka responded. "I scored pretty high on my entrance exams and I should have a lot open to me." She told her mother with a smile.

"Well i'm very glad to hear that, you're such a smart girl." Her mother turned her head and smiled back. The phone rang throughout the house. There was one near the sink within Yuka's mother's reach. She picked it up and held it between her ear and shoulder with a plate in hand. "Hello?" She asked. "I'm sorry, where did you say you're located?" Yuka turned her attention to her mother out of curiosity. "Toyko? Well I don't mean to be rude, but i'm confused as to why you're calling here." The woman on the phone spoke a little and Yuka saw her mother's eyes widen. She dropped the plate on the ground and it shattered.

* * *

Kouta was sitting alone in his room in the hospital, he had a tray of food in front of him but he wasn't really interested in it. For some reason the food tasted terrible and he didn't feel like eating it. So he just sat alone, still trying to process what happened in his head. It felt like a bad dream to him, he was still unsure if it really happened. Rize's eyes, and those things from her back. What in the world was she? His thoughts were interrupted when the door to his room opened. A nurse stepped in and held the door open. "Kouta, you have a couple visitors." Visitors? Out of nowhere a young woman about his age with short brown hair rushed into the room by his side and tightly hugged him.

"Kouta, you idiot!" She cried. "Do you have any idea how worried we were about you?" She hugged him tightly and began to cry. An older woman who seemed to be her mother stepped in and nodded to the nurse to let her know to leave them for a little. The younger woman was still crying on Kouta, while he just sat there motionlessly. "Kouta, do you remember me?" She looked up at him through a tear stricken face. He was silent for a moment.

"Yuka..." He responded softly.

"Good, I was afraid you might have forgotten me." She let go of her grip on him and wiped the tears from her eyes.

"We got a call from this hospital saying that you had been involved in an accident and had undergone surgery." Yuka's mother explained. "Kouta, what on earth were you doing at that construction site, and who was that girl you were with?" Kouta turned his gaze away from her at her questions. Could he tell her the truth, or at least what he perceived as the truth.

"I... i'm sorry, I don't really remember it that well." He told her. "Her name was Rize, and I met with her as a private adviser for college. We met at a coffee shop together and talked for awhile, then we left and it was dark and I don't really remember much after that."

"I see..." He mother replied. Something was off, Kouta seemed different than he was when they last met all those years ago.

"I'm sorry this happened again."

"Again?" She asked confused and he nodded.

"7 years ago, I honestly can't say I remember much about when I last visited." He told them, still averting his gaze.

"Oh..." Yuka was sitting on his bed, but now looked away from him too starting to cry again.

"I'm sorry. It's just, that was the year my dad died in that car accident, then Kanae got really sick and died too." That's when Yuka and her mother realized. He had no memory of anything back then, not even how his family died. Yuka was wide eyed at what Kouta had just told them. He couldn't see that though as she was still facing away from him. "I guess too much stress like that just messes with my memory."

"Kouta, your..." Yuka stopped talking when her mother placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Yes, it's a shame what happened to Kanae and your father. We're both very sorry about that." She cut in and stopped her daughter from telling him. Yuka looked up at her mother surprised but decided not to say anything there. Instead just looking down from her gaze.

"Well i'm sorry our reunion turned out like this." He apologized. "But I do have some good news." He started to sound brighter again. "I'm going to be going back to Kamakura when school starts up again."

"Really?" Yuka turned to him again, now happy and smiling.

"Yeah, I found a school there that I can get accepted into. It's nothing special, it's just a safety school."

"A safety school?" Yuka asked concerned.

"Yeah, I didn't score very high on my entrance exams." He told them sounded a bit disappointed. "So there's not a whole lot out there for me, but I did find one in Kamakura I should be able to get into."

"Well glad to hear that Kouta." His aunt responded. "It would be nice to have you over again, it's been too long."

"It sure has." He smiled to his aunt.

"Hey Kouta, aren't you going to eat your food?" Yuka asked seeing the full tray of food.

"Oh, no I think something might be wrong with it. It just doesn't taste right." He took a spoonful of mashed potatoes. "Here, what do you think?" He handed the spoon out to Yuka. She took it from him and tried it for herself.

"This is really good." She told him, making him feel surprised by her reaction. "You really don't like it?" She asked and handed him his spoon back.

"Not really." He placed the spoon down oh his full tray. "I guess I just don't have much of an appetite after that accident."

"Well than you had better lie down and rest." Yuka patted him on the arm and stood up from his bed. "It was really nice to see you again Kouta, even if it was under these circumstances." Both Yuka and her mother headed for the door.

"We look forward to having you back in Kamakura this spring." Her mother told him as she held the door open for her daughter to leave. She closed it behind them and Kouta looked down at the food on his tray. Why did it taste so funny to him? Maybe it was just nerves, nothing to get worked up about.

After walking down the hall for a bit, Yuka finally decided to speak up to her mother. "Mom, why didn't you tell Kouta about what really happened to his family 7 years ago?"

"He was just in a terrible accident and is under a lot of stress." She explained. "I think the last thing we should be doing is adding more stress by telling him his family was murdered in front of him. Besides, I think it might be better this way. If he goes on believing their deaths were mere accidents rather than vicious intent." Yuka just stared at her mother as they walked down the hallway. She was unsure of what to say. She wanted to tell him the truth, but also realized her mother is right and that the truth might end up hurting him. She just walked through the hospital silently, realizing it really was better to keep quiet. Still, she looked forward to having him around again in the spring.

* * *

Kouta was in his apartment, and bent over the toilet. He was throwing up after trying to eat just a sandwich. He had recovered unusually quick and spent only 5 days in the hospital. However he hadn't eaten a thing since he was administered to the hospital. Now it had been a week since that day. He was hungry, he could feel it. But anything he tried to eat tasted terrible and wouldn't stay down. He could feel himself getting weak, and getting sick wasn't helping at all. After the vomiting stopped and fell back and sat against the bathroom wall. What the hell was going on? Why couldn't he heat anything? He heard a noise from below, odd since he was up so high. He shouldn't be able to hear much of anything on the sidewalk below unless it was very loud. He could hear the voices of two people exiting the building. A man and a woman.

_Food._

What hell was that? Was that him?

_Hunt. Kill._

Kouta put a hand up to his face. What the hell was wrong with him? Something felt wrong about his left eye, it wasn't in pain but it felt... different. He stood up at looked at his reflection in the mirror. He damn near had a heart attacked right there when he saw himself. The whites of his left eye were now pitch black, and his iris was red. It was just like Rize, so that means... that really happened. He stumbled back and hit the wall again, never taking his eyes off the mirror. He tried to grasp at what was going on. He couldn't eat anything, his left eye was turning different colors, and he was thinking of people as food. What the hell happened to him? Who could he turn to for help? Yuka? No, she couldn't know what was going on with him. What would she think of him? He felt like he wanted to cry. He was helpless and alone now. He couldn't tell anyone and he couldn't get help for whatever was wrong with him. He started to think about that day when everything changed for him. Then he remembered something, that waitress. That look she gave him as they left, like she knew something. She must have known something was going to happen, she KNEW Rize was going to try and kill him. He had to go back to that shop, he had to find that girl. Touka was her name right? He went over to his coat rack and got a gray zip-up hoodie and put it on. He was about to leave with his hand on the door knob when he remembered something. His left eye. He went back into the bathroom and sure enough it was still black and red. He couldn't go out like that, what would other people think? He rummaged around through his drawers to find something he could use to cover it up. He managed to find a black eye patch shoved way in the back of his sock drawer. He remembered last year he went to a Halloween party as a pirate. He decided it was good enough and put it on over his left eye. He left his apartment like that and returned to that coffee shop, Anteiku.

He had to walk across a few districts to go get to it but he was finally there, Anteiku. That coffee shop he met Rize at a week ago. Where his whole life began to change. However it seemed he got there too late. The lights were off inside and the sign read 'Closed'. He sighed in disappointment and decided to head back. He would just have to try again tomorrow. Then he heard something, and again it was much farther away then he should have been able to. "Come on sweetie, be a doll." He heard an older man say. It sounded like there was struggling too. It was coming from the other side of the shop. Kouta decided to run around it and see what was going on. Besides, he was no stranger to danger any longer. When he got to the back alley, he found and older man grabbing hold of a young girl's arm. It was Touka, the girl he had been looking for. "Come on you're real cute. Whad'ya say, wanna come back to my place?" He pestered her. He was clearly making unwanted advances towards her.

"Hey! Leave her alone!" Kouta scolded the man. He turned back and gave Kouta a bored look.

"Beat it kid, this doesn't concern you." Those were the last words he ever spoke. There was a red streak across his neck and his head was slashed off at an angle. Blood spurted out everywhere as he fell to his knees then to the ground. Kouta just watched in horror, mouth open at the sight.

"Sorry you had to see that, I guess it can't be helped." Touka said to him in a rather ruthless tone. She stepped forward from the shadows and could see her eyes. They were black and red, just like Rize and now him. He gasped a little at the sight. He was right, she knew all along. "Hey, you're that kid from the other day." She recognized him. Then like a flash, she was suddenly standing right in front of him, looking him right in the face with her demon eyes. "Alright, if you want to get out of here alive you better tell me everything you know about Rize. Do these eyes look familiar?" She interrogated him, glaring all the while. He was shocked at first and didn't know what to do. So he just gritted his teeth and took off his eye patch. Now she was the one who looked surprised. "What the hell? Why do you have only one kakugan?"

"First you tell me something!" He demanded. He sudden fierceness caught her off guard. "Tell me... just what the hell was Rize? And just what the hell am I?" He was very determined. He knew she could kill him easily, but he didn't care. He had already faced his death once and avoided it. He had to know the truth. She was surprised a bit at first, but soon gave him a stone cold look. But this time with less murderous intent.

"You're serious? You have no clue what you really are?" She asked him.

"No." He responded. She was silent for a moment before sighing at him.

"Fine, follow me... idiot." She turned around and pulled out a set of keys. She opened the back door to the shop and led him inside. She told him to take a seat at one of the tables and flicked the lights on. She headed upstairs as he sat there and waited. It wasn't even a minute later when she came back down, an old man dressed in what looked to be the uniform for the shop behind her. He was wrinkly with grey hair but was smiling and seemed rather happy. She led him over to Kouta and he stood in front of Kouta. "This is him." Touka gestured towards Kouta.

"I see." He commented. "Hello young man, my name is Yoshimura." He introduced himself. "I am the owner of Anteiku, and I understand you seem to be having some issues. Notably your eye."

"Yes!" Kouta responded quickly, eager for some answers.

"Let me ask, around when did you start to notice some changes?"

"About a week ago, after I was admitted to the hospital. That night when I left here with Rize, she tried to attack me." The old man's face scrounged up at hearing that. He clearly did not like Rize. "Her eyes turned black and red and these four things came from her back. She beat me up pretty bad, but she ended up hitting a fuse box and got electrocuted. They found us not long after and I was told they implanted one of her kidneys into me." He saw Yoshimura's face change again, this time into surprise. He seemed to be curious as to what happened to Kouta. "Then all of the sudden I couldn't eat food. Everything tastes awful and I kept throwing it up. I could only drink water. I got really hungry and just tonight noticed my eye changed like how Rize's was back then. I remembered before we left that night, our waitress was giving me a weird look." Kouta turned to her. "It was Touka, right? I kinda got a feeling from you like you knew something was going to happen, and I wasn't wrong. So I came here to ask for help." Yoshimura was now looking at Kouta very seriously, like he just found out some grave secret. Which essentially he had.

"Did you tell anyone else about this?" He asked Kouta rather sternly.

"No. My cousin and aunt came to visit me my first day in the hospital and they only knew I wasn't eating. But they both thought I had no appetite from the accident. They don't know anything else." He instantly began to wonder if he should have mentioned Yuka or his aunt. But he was coming to them for help with a very serious issue. He felt it was better to be honest. He had some feeling in the back of his mind that lying would backfire severely.

"Good, it's better that no one else gets involved. What's your name son?"

"Kouta." He told the old man.

"Well Kouta, this may come as a shock so brace yourself. You are no longer human." Kouta looked at him in shock. No longer human? "You are now a Ghoul. We are like humans in many ways, but with a few biological differences. The biggest one being the enzymes our stomach create compared to that of a human. We can not digest human food, it makes us very ill. The only two things we can eat that humans do are water and coffee." That made the coffee shop make sense.

"Then... what do I eat?"

"Brace yourself." He put a hand on Kouta's shoulder. "In order to survive, Ghouls have to eat humans." Kouta almost threw up again from hearing that. Was he for real? Does he really have to heat people? Kouta now had his hand over his mouth in disgust. He throught about the two people he heard leave his building and the craving he had then. He thought that if he wasn't a ghoul and heard that he definitely would have thrown up.

"Are... you serious?" He asked. Yoshimura nodded.

"I am sorry, I know it is not pleasant but there is no other way." He sounded very sympathetic.

"But I..." Kouta could feel the tears about to come. "I don't want to have to kill people. I don't want to hurt anyone."

"You don't have to." Kouta's head popped up at Yoshimura after he heard that. "Follow me." Yoshimura began to walk away and Kouta followed along with Touka. He lead them to a door near the stairs and unlocked it. It led down into a basement. He took the two young students down into its depths to reveal a large room with a large safe like door on the far wall. "One moment please." Yoshimura excused himself as he went over and unlocked the large door her stepped inside and cool air could be felt coming from the room. He stepped inside for a moment and came back out with a package in hand. He closed the large door behind him and handed Kouta the square package. It had blood on it, and Kouta instantly knew what it was. "You see Kouta, there are many ghouls who can not hunt for numerous reasons. Here at Anteiku, we help ghouls try to leave peacefully and among humans so we can have a peaceful coexistence. If you ever need food we are always willing to help." He smiled down at Kouta who did not know what to say. He lowered his head.

"Tell me something..." He began quietly. "This person... were they at least a bad person?"

"Hmm?" He was confused by the question.

"This person who died... were they at least a bad person? Like that pervert harassing Touka outside? Please, it would just ease my mind knowing that it wasn't some innocent person..." He fought to hold back tears. He could not see it, but Yoshimura was looking at him rather sympathetically.

"I don't know, they died of their own accord." Kouta looked at him in surprise once more. "Here at Anteiku we do not hunt. There is a spot not far from here where many people throw themselves off a cliff. We take their bodies back here and that's what i've given you. I sympathize with you, I understand too the value of a human life and wish to exist without killing." Kouta was stunned, a few moments ago he felt like he was an an absolute monster, but perhaps he wasn't completely lost. He could still live his life, he just needed to learn how to adjust. He could still go to school in the spring and meet his cousin again. Of course he could never tell her the truth but he could at least live his life.

"The meat is free of charge of course, but if you want help learning to adjust with your new life that will come at a cost."

"I don't have a lot of money." Kouta explained. Yoshimura just laughed.

"Oh no, nothing like that. What I meant is I want your help." Kouta looked at him confused. "I would like you to start working at Anteiku. Learn to live with ghouls as well as humans and we'll teach you how. Can you start tomorrow?"

Kouta couldn't believe this. He still felt bad about what he was, but he found help. People who were just like him, people who were ghouls that wanted to live peacefully. It was a new home for him. His life changed, but maybe it wasn't for the worse. It was just... different.

"Yes."

And thus, he would spend the next few months working at Anteiku. He would learn how to live seeming like a normal human, how to hide his ghoul tendencies, and how to fight. Touka tough him how to fight, and Yoshimura taught him how to eat human food and serve coffee properly. He would meet some other ghouls along the way and even had a run in with a couple of CCG investigators. But he learned how to cope living in the human world while secretly being a ghoul, and soon returned to Kamakura to live at Maple Inn.


	3. Missing in action

"Kouta." A nurse called to him. "Dr. Kaimei would like to see you."

"OK, thank you." He replied back. He was in a room of medical records sorting and filing. He had started working at the Kamakura General Hospital not long after coming to the college town. He was currently dressed the part too in the light blue shirt and pants. He put the files we was ordering away and closed the drawer to the file cabinet before leaving to the doctor's office. Kouta was Dr. Kaimei's assistant and got the position through a reference. He walked down the few halls and arrived at Dr. Kaimei's open office. Kouta knocked on the door. "Hello, you wanted to see me sir?" He asked as he stepped in. Dr. Kaimei was sitting at his desk reading some papers when Kouta walked in. He was a middle aged man with long grey hair tied up in a ponytail behind his head. He smiled at Kouta when he entered, his face beginning to show signs of age.

"Ah yes, please sit down Kouta." He welcomed him. Kouta closed the door behind him before sitting down. His talks with the doctor were usually private matters. Kouta sat down on one of the two seats on the opposite side of his desk. "Today is pay day, I wanted to hand you your earnings personally." He opened a drawer and pulled out an envelope. Inside it was a check with Kouta's name on it. He handed it over to his assistant.

"Oh, well thank you sir." Kouta thanked him as he took the check.

"Also, we just got a large supply of blood from a local drive. Have you eaten lately?" He asked his assistant sounding concerned. The reference he got the job through was Yoshimura, the owner of Anteiku. Dr. Kaimei was also a ghoul himself who was good friends with Yoshimura. He too believed that Ghouls could peacefully exist among humans and followed Yoshimura's practices. He ended up working his way up to head physician at the Kamakura General Hospital. He hired another ghoul to work at the mortician, together they would give food out to local ghouls from anyone who died in the hospital. They didn't have the supply Anteiku did of course as they would have to give the bodies to the families. But there were certain parts of the body where they could remove some meat and it would go unnoticed. Thus they could keep the Ghouls around the area fed and Kamakura remained a peaceful area. There weren't nearly as many as in Tokyo or other large cities but there were still a few. Kouta however, hadn't eaten flesh in awhile. He had found that it was possible to survive and keep his hunger in check my drinking only blood packs from the hospital. Kamakura was a generally peaceful area and had a surplus of donated blood.

"Ah, it's been about 5 days sir." Kouta responded.

"Well then, you had better go do some 'dating' in there then. Make sure it's all still fresh and usable." Dr. Kaimei instructed him.

"Yes sir!"

"And Kouta..." Dr. Kaimei stopped him before he could get up. "Have you had any urges or outbursts since your arrival here?"

"No sir." Kouta responded. "Why do you ask?"

"Because you should know by now that just drinking blood will only curb your hunger. Should you get excited or riled it is possible that you may not revert back to your human form until you eat." The doctor informed him.

"Ah, well my 'eye' did come out at one time earlier in the week but I got it under control." He told his employer.

"Did anyone see?" He asked sounding rather concerned.

"No sir, I was in my room when it happened."

"Good, may I ask what happened?"

"Oh..." Kouta rubbed the back of his head. "I just started to feel bad because someone told me they like me, and I can't let them know the truth."

"I see..." The doctor said, crossing his fingers. "Kouta, you never told me you had a girlfriend." He replied with a playful smile.

"W-what?" Kouta's face was now red. "No, it's not like that."

"Well who is she then?"

"She's just some girl I live with."

"So you two live together but aren't dating?" The doctor sounded rather confused.

"Yeah, there's other girls I live with."

"Oh my, aren't you quite the young bachelor?" He replied with a grin. Kouta was now ever redder.

"N-no, it's not like that at all!" He defended. The doctor just laughed.

"Oh i'm just joking around Kouta, no need to get so worked up." He told him with a smile. Kouta nodded and smiled, his face still bright red. He left to the back of the hospital for the cold room where all of the blood pack were held. There he went back to work and took a lunch break.

* * *

"I'm home!" Kouta called out when he arrived back at Maple House that evening. The sun was starting to go down and it was about time for dinner. Kouta had changed back into his regular clothes before leaving the hospital. A regular pain of jeans and yellow t-shirt with black sleeves. There was no response from anyone from within. He decided to make his way to the dining room. He opened the sliding shoji door to find everyone was already at the table. But there was no food for some reason, and most of the residents there seemed to have a serious look on their face for some reason. All except for Nyu who was happy to see Kouta.

"Kouta home!" She called out when she saw him.

"Hi Nyu." He greeted her. "Guys, what's going on?" He asked. "Where's dinner?"

"Kouta, sit down." Yuka instructed him rather sternly. He went over and took his seat, feeling a bit uneasy at what was going on. When he sat down Yuka spoke again. "First, I just want to say we all care about you Kouta, and we're here for you."

"Uhh..." He stammered confused.

"Kouta... a couple weeks ago I heard you throwing up in the bathroom after breakfast. I didn't think much of it at first, but then Mayu said she heard you doing it too after dinner last week. Then again this week." Oh no, Kouta thought to himself "Kouta, we know you have an eating disorder." Yuka told him. He was unsure of what to say at first. He was afraid they were going to ask about it and his identity as a Ghoul might be found out. But thankfully they had come to the conclusion of that is what it was.

"Uhh, yeah..." He responded. "I have body image issues and don't want to look fat."

"You're not fat Kouta! You don't even look it one bit." Yuka responded.

"Kouta!" Nyu ran over and hugged him. "Kouta, eat food. Be healthy." She cried on him. He patted her head. She was always really nice, but she had no clue of what was really going on. None of them did for that matter.

"Well, I just don't want to get fat so I throw up after I eat." He told them. Nyu had begun to let go of him now. Yuka went over to him.

"Damn it you, stop that. Just look, you;re not fat you're..." She lifted up his shirt and stopped mid sentence when she did. She had never noticed it until now but Kouta was sort of ripped. He didn't have large bulging muscles but without a shirt you could definitely tell he was in great shape. Yuka blushed a deep red when she saw that and the other residents (besides Nyu of course) also began to feel awkward. Yuka then punched Kouta and he hell over on his side.

"Ow! Hey what for?"

"You jerk! You made me do that!" She yelled back in frustration.

"No I didn't, you came over here and lifted up my shirt!"

"Yeah to prove a point, how can you be afraid of getting fat when you look like that?" She was still flustered.

"I have to agree with Yuka Mr. 50 push-ups, 50 sit-ups every morning." Mayu told him. Kouta looked down and thought back to his training with Touka.

"_Now I want you to do 50 push-ups and 50 sit-ups every morning._" Touka told him.

"_Every morning?_" Kouta repeated in surprise.

"_Yes, every morning. You have to get into shape so you can fight. Otherwise you might as well be dead already._"

"_What?! I don't wanna die!_" Kouta shouted out before dropping to the ground and instantly doing as many push-ups as he could. He remembered that too, he did so many that he passed out there and woke up there the next morning. His flashback was interrupted when he felt someone touching him. Nyu had his shirt lifted up again and was playing with his muscular pecs like he did with the breasts of every other female in that house. "Wah!" Kouta shouted out in shock.

"Nyuu!" She cheered out.

"Will you stop that already?!" Yuka scolded her. Nyu looked at Yuka rather surprised and let go of Kouta. She then grabbed his wrists and placed his hands on her breasts, making him turn a very deep shade of red.

"Nyu?" She was practically asking 'How about this?' Yuka clubbed her over the head with her fist.

"That's not helping!" She shouted.

"Nyu!" Nyu yelled out as she hit the ground. Yuka sighed. Her antics really got to her sometimes.

"Kouta listen..." She knelt down and gently held his hand. "We're family here, and we're here to support you with this. So please, I want you to promise me you'll try to get better alright?" She began to tear up." Kouta looked at her sad, hurt face. He looked over to the rest of the residents and they were all smiling. They were all there to support him. He didn't really have an eating disorder, he just couldn't eat human food. Of course he couldn't tell them that. He knew they were all upset, but the truth would be even worse. How could he explain to them that he had to eat people in order to survive? So he just grabbed Yuka's hand and smiled at her.

"Ok, I promise i'll try." He smiled at her. She smiled back at him and her tears began to vanish.

"Well, now that that's over how about I make us some food?" Nozomi asked. "I'm planning on making curry rice tonight."

"Sounds good." Mayu smiled.

"Nyu!" Nyu agreed, now sitting on her knees next to Kouta with a lump on her head. Kouta nodded and Nozomi went into the kitchen to make dinner for everyone, and they ate together that night as a family. Just like they always did.

Later that night, Kouta went out into town for a walk. He went into a back alley and was throwing up against a corner. He couldn't regurgitate his food at Maple House anymore. Not with everyone thinking he wasn't well. So from now on he had to sneak out at night after dinner to do it, and he'd have to do it at work in the morning. Dr. Kaimei would understand after he explained it to him. He hated having to force himself to throw up, it was disgusting. But he would becoming very ill if he didn't, and he couldn't let them know the truth. He had to keep it hidden. They would just have to go on thinking it was just an eating disorder. That was so much simpler than the truth.

* * *

The next day...

"I'm home!" Kouta called out after coming home from another day at work. Today he was wearing a light blue button down shirt open over a white t-shirt. He was a bit later today and suspected that everyone must have eaten already. He told them do if he ever had to work late and it had happened before. To his surprise though, he heard Yuka call out from the dining room.

"Come on in, we're waiting on Nana." Kouta tilted his head confused.

"Nana?" He said to himself. He walked into the room to find everyone else was waiting there while food sat on the table getting cold. Nyu was even nibbling on the table. "Hey, what's going on? Where's Nana?"

"She said she had to go somewhere to do something but that she'd be home in time for dinner. That was when we were leaving the beach before sundown. She still hasn't returned." Yuka explained. That was odd. Where had Nana gone off to, and why wasn't she back by now?

"I'm going to go look for her then, you guys stay here!" Kouta told them.

"I'm coming!" Nyu shouted out.

"Huh?"

"Nyu hungry. Nana, food." She started trying to say.

"Oh, I get it. Nyu wants to help bring Nana back so she can eat too." Mayu interpreted.

"Yes!" Nyu agreed.

"Well alright, just don't go wandering off." Kouta told her. He put his shoes on in the entrance and Nyu put on some sandals. Two two of them left the Maple Inn together to go out into town searching for Nana.

Where could she have gone off to? Kouta thought to himself.

* * *

"Papa, we need to get out of here." Nana begged of Director Kurama. She was tugging on his arm, trying to get him to flee with her. They had finally managed to get away from Mariko with some help from Bando. He fired a rocket at her, which managed to stop easily. However Bando had shot the rocket after she caught it, causing it to explode in her face. She managed to block enough of the explosion to save herself, but not without some injury. The same could not be said for Isobe, the Chief's assistant. He was gravely injured, and after Mariko had told him she wanted to die, he desperately gave her the passcode to save himself from the explosion. It was a farce however, and she tricked him into giving her the code. So she beheaded him, having no further use for him. She managed to save herself and vowed to kill everybody, feeling betrayed by her own father. But she had lost sight of them in the explosion as they had fallen back. Bando managed to regroup with them after firing the rocket.

"Nana... you need to get away from here. I will stay." He told her.

"What?!" She responded in shock "But Papa, why?"

"Because I can no longer allow Mariko to continue killing people. It was my sin from the start, and I have to finish it." He explained to her. "Bando, take Nana and get out of here."

"What? Why do I have to listen to you?!" Bando shouted back.

"Please, I beg of you." Kurama asked. Bando gritted his teeth.

"So tiresome." He commented.

"Nana will stay and help Papa fight!" She exclaimed.

"Oh look, someone dropped a sushi roll on the ground." Bando pointed to the ground. Nana's eyes lit up.

"Where?" She asked drooling and looking down. She felt something hit the back of her head. Bando pistol whipped her and knocked her out, then throwing her over his shoulder to carry her.

"Thank you Bando." Kurama thanked him.

"Yeah, don't mention it. So then..." He stopped when he heard the sound of helicopter overhead. Transport ones for troops too, marked 'Riot Police'. "Woah, that's not SAT! Time to scram." He ran out there with Nana in tow. Kurama went back to Enoshima to confront Mariko for the last time. There she was surrounded by a squad of riot troops. Some of them shot at her with MP5s while others blocked her returning the bullets with riot shield. Yet they all waited just outside of her abnormally long reach.

What are they doing? It's almost as if they're waiting for something. Mariko thought. She was right. not far off the coast of Enoshima two boats launched missiles. Their target, right for Mariko's position.

* * *

"Nyu nyu nyuu, nyu nyu nyuu." Nyu hummed along to the tune of the song Nozomi had taught her, while skipping through town.

"Boy, you sure are happy today." Kouta noted. She just continued to sing along to the poem Elfen Lied. Kouta noticed something going on in town. There was a police blockade on the bridge to Enoshima, preventing anyone from passing. Kouta and Nyu joined the crowd onlooking the blockade in the back. The people were talking about why Enoshima was blocked off, and about having to go another route. Kouta took a look over to the island. "I guess she couldn't be there, huh?" He said to himself. Nyu went over to the railing and looked over to the island.

"There!" She pointed towards Enoshima.

"What?" Kouta asked her.

"Nana, over there!" She backed up from the railing. "Nyu go get her!" She told him as she vaulted past the blockade and past the cops.

"Hey, wait up you dummy." Kouta jumped high over the cops as well and chased after Nyu.

"Hey, stop those kids!" One of the cops shouted. They all failed however to catch up to Nyu and Kouta.

"Sorry, we'll be right back." Kouta turned and apologized to them while still running after Nyu.

* * *

"Fall back! Everyone take positions!" The squad leader of the Riot Troops on Enoshima shouted. His men fell back from their positions around Mariko. The missiles were enclosing on the island and they had to get clear of the blast. Kurama didn't though, he stayed behind. He couldn't let his sin continue on any longer. He had to atone for what he had done. He began to approach Mariko, who just looked at him confused. "What are you doing?" She asked. He didn't respond, instead silently drawing closer. "If you come closer i'll... i'll kill you." She now started to sound afraid. She wanted to, but she couldn't. What on earth was he doing. He was close now. "Don't come any closer." She instructed. He outstretched his arms and she just watched. Much to her surprise, he knelt down and hugged.

"Warmth, love, these are two of the basic things I deprived you of." He told her still hugging his daughter. "Mariko, I know you can never forgive me but... i'm so sorry. I'm sorry for locking you away all those years and not being there for you. I just want you two know I have always loved you.I love you from the bottom of my heart."

"Really?" She asked him, starting to tear up. "Father, I... I love you too." She smiled at him as he broke off the hug but still held onto her.

"Let's always be together from now on." He told her.

"Really?"

"Yes."

"I..." She stammered. "I would like that very much. Then, in the blink of an eye, a missile came down from the sky and crush Mariko right in front of Kurama. He just knelt there, having watched the only daughter he would ever have disappear from his life. He heard a whirring sound and looked up to see a second one coming right for him this time.

_Hiromi, i've made you wait._ Was what went through Kurama's mind. Flashes of his lost wife went through his mind as well as what his life with her and Mariko might have been. A happy loving family. But it was too late now. The second missile hit its mark and the end broke on impact.

Kurama was in darkness, he couldn't see anything. "Papa!" He heard Mariko cry out for him. Mariko, who he had abandoned. "Papa!" She cried again. "Papa!" This time it was different, who was that? "Papa! I'm here." Light, there was suddenly light and he couldn't see for a second. When he opened his eyes again Nana was standing there. "Papa! You're alive!" She hugged him. He had survived the missile impact and was unharmed. The missile was ripped around him through some unseen force.

"Nana... what happened?" He asked.

"Mariko saved you." She told him. He turned to see the second missile next to him. Mariko had given her life in order to save him. Even after all he had caused her, she gave her life to save him. He could never thank her for this. Then suddenly the missile next to him began to rip apart from the inside. After it was torn open a figure emerged from it. A small girl, Mariko. She floated in air for a bit as wind ripped around her.

"Mariko..." Was all Kurama could say. She had survived after all, but something seemed different. Nana was trying to figure out how she was alive when she couldn't sense her presence. Unless... can't be.

"Myu?" Mariko said very innocently. Kurama and Nana just stared at her surprised. The troops stood at a distance, waiting to see what would happen. "Daddy!" Mariko shouted in delight as she ran over to Kurama. She tripped and fell though, then started wailing on the ground.

"Mariko? What happened?" Kurama asked.

"I've seen this before, it's just like what happened with Lucy." Nana told him. His eyes went wide at hearing that name. "She developed a split personality and lost all her memories. She shouldn't be able to use her powers either now. When I found Lucy like that I just couldn't bring myself to fight her." Kurama was shocked at hearing this. Split personality? He then felt someone tugging on his pants. Mariko was now grabbing onto him and looking up at her father wide eyed with delight. I can finally end this. He thought, pulling out a pistol. Mariko, i'm sorry...

Before he could pull the trigger, his gun exploded into pieces in his hand. Nana had used her vectors to destroy the firearm. "Papa, you mustn't." She pleaded. "Because she's your daughter. It's a father's job to teach his daughter right from wrong. Even if she has horns, that doesn't mean she's a bad girl. So please, please get along with Mariko."

"I..."

"Director!" A female voice called out. He turned back to see Shirakawa, the deputy director, had just arrived at scene via helicopter.

"Shirakawa, what on earth are you doing here?" Kurama asked.

"We have a problem." She told him. "The Chief is moving the missile launch up to today."

"He's what?!" Kurama responded in horror.

"Missile? What missile?" Nana asked. Shirakawa looked down, surprised to see Nana there. Didn't the Director send her off to escape?

"A missile containing an airborne strand of the Diclonius virus." Kurama told her. "Chief Kakuzawa plans to detonate it over Tokyo Bay and infect 2,000,000 people. If that happens, then in just 5 years humanity's future will be stolen." Nana stared at him wide eyed in shock. Mariko simply clung to her father, not understanding any of what was going on. "But... he's missing one key factor."

"He is?" Shirakawa asked.

"Lucy." Kurama expanded his explanation. "He may infect millions with the Diclonius virus, but the Lebensborn Project won't be complete without Lucy. He needs her in order to create a breed of Diclonius that can reproduce. Which means we need to find Lucy first."

"But we have no idea where she is!" Shirakawa cried.

"Not exactly." Kurama looked over to Nana. He knelt in front of her and put a hand on her shoulder. "Nana, where is Lucy?"

"What?" She asked confused.

"You said you found Lucy. Where is she?" Nana was silent and just stared at him. She didn't know what to do. "what's the matter? Why can't you answer?" Nana was torn. If she told them about Lucy her other friends might be put in danger. But she couldn't disobey her papa either. What was she to do? So had to...

"Nana!" Lucy called out. Everyone turned to see Lucy, standing there before them, with Kouta right next to her.


	4. Battle on Enoshima

Director Kurama, Nana, and Shirakawa all stood there starting at Lucy. Surprised to see her appear before them suddenly. Shirakawa was also surprised that she was not attacking them right away, but Nana knew better by now and Kurama knew too from what happened to Mariko.

"Lucy... Kouta..." Nana spoke as she saw her friends. "What are you guys doing here?"

"We came looking for you because you didn't return for dinner." Kouta told her.

"Nyu hungry!" Nyu shouted. "Nana come home, eat yummy stuff. Somen!" Nana was surprised and silent. They had actually cared enough to come looking for her, but still their presence there was only about to worsen the situation.

"Nana... what's going on? Who are these people?" Kouta asked concerned.

"GRAB HER!" Kurama shouted out. Before either her or Kouta had time to react 3 riot police pounced on Nyu and held her down. She cried out in both shock and pain as the was pinned to the ground by two men and the third held a submachine gun to her head.

"Hey! What just what do you think you're doing?" Kouta shouted at them in protest. He ran over to Nyu only to have the third soldier aim the gun at him instead.

"Stay back!" He ordered. Kouta gritted his teeth.

_I guess it can't be helped._ He thought to himself. In the blink of an eye Kouta uppercutted the soldier in the solar plexus so hard his feet actually lifted off the ground about a foot. The other two guards looked over to see what happened to find Kouta was already in air. He sent out a bi-directional kick and struck both guards in the face. The others just stared at this shock.

_How... how did Kouta do that?_ Nana thought to herself. _Is Kouta really this strong?_ Meanwhile, Kouta offered his hand to Nyu and helped her back to her feet.

"Kouta?" She was confused as to how he just did that.

"It's ok Nyu, i'm here." He told her. "What the hell is your problem?!" Kouta shouted at Kurama.

"I should ask you the same." He responded rather calmly. "Do you have any idea who that girl really is?" He asked, eyeing Lucy intently.

"What are you talking about?"

"That girl, she..." Kurama stopped talking and looked up in the sky with his mouth open. Kouta looked up to see what it was to see a missile flying overhead. It soared high in the sky and past the island, exploding off in the sky far away. The bang will still very loud an audible, easily heard by those on the island. Kouta and Lucy were looking in surprise, unknowing of what that just was. While everyone stared in horror. Humanity's future had just been taken away.

"Daddy!" Mariko clung tightly to her father's leg, starting to tear up.

"There, there." He pet her head to calm her down. "I'm sorry that explosion scared you." Kouta noticed the small child gripping Kurama's legs. He noticed something about her. She had horns on the top of her head, just like Nyu and Nana. She also had the same scent as them. She was just like the two of them, she too wasn't human. Kouta had known ever since meeting her that day on the beach she wasn't human. He could tell from the start when her scent was off. The horns just confirmed that. But he took her in anyway, sympathizing with her and thinking she must have been different just like him. "It's too late now, humanity's future has been stolen."

"Wait, what?" Kouta questioned after hearing that.

"That missile, it just released an airborne virus to 2,000,000 people." Kouta gave a look of horror after that. That was a biological weapon? "But none of the infected will show any symptoms, they won't know they're infected until it's too late. They carry around the Diclonius virus, and their children will be born with horns. Just like you've seen." Kouta looked over at Nyu, who was clinging to his arm. A virus caused her to be born? What kind of virus does that? "Thus, in only 5 years, there will be no more humans left on the planet. Just like the chief planned. But... I can't allow his project to reach fruition." He bent down and picked up on of the submachine guns that flew off one of the three currently unconscious soldiers. He immediately aimed it at Nyu, scaring both her and Kouta. "Without Lucy, the Lebensborn Project will fail. So, the girl must die." He told Kouta with much seriousness. Kouta looked frightened right now. Either that man was going to kill Nyu, or he could protect her. He had the power to do it. But then he'd have to come clean with what he really is. He decided to take option B. He grabbed Nyu by the wrist and turned for the bridge.

"Nyu, run! They're going to kill you!"

"But Nana, somen!" She pleaded.

"We don't have time for that now." He tugged on her but she was refusing to budge.

"Nana, bring Nana home!" She told him. Right after she got that out, she was hit with a bullet. There was a loud bang and Kurama shot Nyu right in the chest. Kouta watched in horror as his friend's face froze up and she began to fall back. Blood shout out from her wound below her collarbone. She began to fall back farther, his hand still gripping her.

"Nyu!" He shouted in horror at watching her. Before she fell halfway to the ground, she stopped herself with her feet from sliding back any farther and stood up. Everyone else just watching, their eyes widened. She hung her hair over her face.

"That was close, if I have awoken even a moment later I would have died. It even reached my heart." She said coldly as the bullet spun out in reverse from her wound. She moved the hair out of her eyes and glared forward. Kurama recognized that look, Lucy was back. Nana could feel it too. She was about to speak when she realized someone was holding her arm. She looked over to see Kouta was there. He looked at her like she had just grown a third head, and she looked at him surprised as well "Kouta?"

"Nyu... how... how did you just do that?" He asked, sounding a little concerned. She jsut smiled at him.

"I'm sorry, but i've been withholding some things from you." She told him as she pulled away from his grip. He just stared at her. What did she mean by that? Before he had time to think about it, a guard rushed at Lucy from behind with a baton.

"Look out!" He warned her. Before he had time to help, the soldier was suddenly bisected. He was torn in two by an unseen force and he torso and blood went flying. Kouta watched in horror as the man was torn in two out of nowhere. Then he felt a sharp pain in his head. "Aaahhhh!" He cried out in pain and fell to his knees. His old memories started to fill his head again.

* * *

"Big brother, run. She'll kill you!" Kanae pleaded with him.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" He responded confused.

"She's going to kill you big brother. Get out of here, she's a murderer!" Before she could say another word, Kouta slapped her across the face. She looked back at him seeming rather hurt by his action "But why?"

"I told you to stop telling lies. She's my friend. You know what Kanae, I simply hate you."

"No, don't say you hate me..." Before she had time to say another word, she was suddenly split in half down the waist. Blood shot out everywhere, even onto Kouta as he watched in horror as his sister was killed right in front of him. Their father watched too from right behind Kouta. He knelt down and gripped his daughter's lifeless body in grief. He then glared at a young Lucy with a hate ridden expression. He tried to charge, tried to avenge his daughter but only had his ripped off.

* * *

Back in the present, Kouta had become to come back to his senses. His memory now returned, he looked up at Lucy. She had her back turned to him to confront Kurama and the others. "You..." He spoke softly. "I remember now... you... you killed my sister and my father." He shouted in pain again, he could feel his kakugan was coming out. He kept it hidden underhis hand and tried to make it look like just another headache from his memory returning.

"She did what?" Nana asked in anger. Was he serious right now? She knew he lost his memories from all those years ago, but was that what really happened.

"Why?" He asked her. "Why did you kill them? I thought... we were friends."

"I'm sorry." She told him. "I know that might not mean anything, but I have spent my life ever since that day wanting desperately to apologize. Kouta... i'm so sorry." She turned and looked at him, her face now tear stricken. "But now, I have to fight."

"What?"

She turned away from him. "I'm sorry, there's no other way out of this." She stepped forward one step and glared at Kurama, even with tears still on her face.

"No." Mariko told her as her personality now came back too at her father being in danger. "I won't let you kill my father." She now glared at Lucy, and the two of them stared each other down. Mariko stopped when she felt Kurama put a hand on her shoulder. She looked up at him surprised to see him so close. "Father, what are you doing?" He didn't respond. He just took another step forward and aim the gun in his hands at Lucy.

"You think that will save you?" She mocked him. He didn't respond again. He made his point by shifting his aim and he was now clearly aiming at Kouta, who was kneeling on the ground away from her. She looked down at him then back at Kurama. "You bastard!" She scolded him hatefully. "Do you get your sick kicks by shooting people I care about? Are you going to murder another innocent person?" Kouta was unresponsive, simply staring at Kurama in fear.

"Another? Papa, what's she talking about?" Nana asked him.

"Oh, you didn't tell her?" Lucy asked, starting to sound rather delighted. "Go on, tell her. Tell your daughter about how you really brought me in. How I surrendered myself, and all I asked was that you save one girl. One of your men had shot my friend, and I agreed to come quietly so long as you saved her life. But you didn't. You went back on your word, and an innocent girl died because of you."

"That's not true!" Nana defended. "Papa, tell her. Tell her it's all a lie. She's lying... right?" He didn't move, his aim still on Kouta. Mariko was staring at him as well, wondering if Lucy's story was true or not.

"I'm sorry... I can't. She's telling the truth." He told her. Her eyes went wide and she felt liek she was about to cry. "But, I did try to save that girl."

"I don't believe you." Lucy told him.

"You're not in a position to argue that here." She gritted his teeth at him. "You can either surrender, or i'll kill the boy."

"What? Papa, you can't!" Nana pleaded. Lucy laughed evilly.

"Take a good look Nana." Lucy told him. "The man you call 'Papa', these are his true colors. The true colors of all humans like him."

"You're in no position to argue morality, and you don't have time for it either." He cut her off. "If you surrender, i'll let him live."

"Do you really think i'd trust you after last time?"

"Do you have a choice?" Damn it, he was right. He had a loaded gun aimed at Kouta, and if the other two Diclonii attacked her she probably wouldn't be able to defend him. Lucy looked down at him sympathetically, then turned back to Kurama.

"Papa..." Nana was now next to him, tugging on his unarmed side. "Please, don't hurt that boy. He's my friend, and took Nana in even though I have horns. So please, even if I can't stop you from killing him if Lucy fights back. Please don't kill him if she surrenders." Nana begin to cry. "Please Papa." He looked down at her, feeling sorry for her.

"Alright, for your sake Nana. If Lucy agrees I give Nana my word he will not be harmed." Lucy just looked at the two of them with a sad expression.

"Alright." She said while starting to look down. "I'll let you kill me, just don't harm Kouta." She stepped forward.

"What?" Kouta was shocked. "Nyu... why?"

"My name is Lucy." She told him. "And because, I couldn't bare to see you get hurt." She started to tear up again, then looking down at him once more. "Kouta, before I die I just wanted to apologize to you. Not only for your family, but for deceiving you as well. The truth is... I love you." He looked at her surprised, one hand still over his left eye. "But I knew that you'd never love me back if you knew what I really was. I'm just... a monster." She turn away from him, to face the man pointing a gun at her. "Goodbye, Kouta." Kurama made sure to take careful aim this time. Nana just looked at her sympathetically.

_She... she was afraid I wouldn't love her... because of what she really is..._ Kouta came to a realization. _She... she's just like me._

_Lucy, you've killed so many people, yet you're willing to die just to protect Kouta. You must really love him._ Nana thought. She then looked over at Kouta. He now hand his hands over both eyes and she could see tears streaming down his face. _Kouta, why are you crying?_ There was a lound bang as Kurama fired.

Lucy was ready for the end, she had closed her eyes already. But she had opened them when something much larger rammed into her. She opened her eyes to find Kouta had shoved her out of the way and jumped in the bullet's path. He had his arms raised up and crossed as if trying to shield himself. Everyone looked at the scene shocked, as Kouta threw himself in the bullet's way in order to protect Lucy. The two of them hit the ground with a thud. Lucy was almost instantly up and by Kouta's side. "Kouta!" She shouted. "Why? Why did you tryo to protect me? Even though you're just human?" She was starting to cry over him. Much to her surprise, he sat up, perfectly fine. "Kouta!" She was so glad he was ok.

"I'm sorry too." He told her. She was confused. He tossed something he had in his hands aside. It was the bullet Kurama fired at Lucy.

"He caught it." Shirakawa noticed, everyone else but Kouta and Lucy stared at it. "But how..."

"You see, the truth is..." He looked at her showing her his face, including his left kakugan eye. "I'm a monster too." She looked at him rather concerned, as if that eye was some fatal disease. Now she was the one that had no clue what he was. But he had saved her, he had thrown himself in front of that bullet because he knew how she felt. Because they were both not human.

"Kouta..." She moved her hand to try and touch his cheek, but he stood up before they could make contact. He kept facing her and offered his hand down to help her up.

"Come on, can you still fight?" She looked at him rather surprised. Fight? Did Kouta really intend to fight alongside her? It seemed so odd, he was always so kind. Fighting just didn't seem like it was in his nature. Nonetheless, she took his hand and he helped her back on her feet.

"What?! Kouta, you can't fight Papa and Mariko! They'll kill you." Nana tried to plead with him. He just kept facing away from them.

"I don't want to have to fight... but I suppose I can't convince you to walk away." He responded to both Nana and Kurama.

"Not a chance." Kurama responded. Kouta was silent for a moment.

"Then I guess it can't be helped." He turned to them, his left eye now in full view. He and Lucy both stared down their opponents intensely. The others were all looking shocked at Kouta's left eye. It was black with a red iris. That wasn't normal.

"Hey, what's with his eye?" Mariko asked.

"I have no idea, i've never seen anything like it. Nana?" Kurama turned to her.

"I... I don't know. I've been living with him for the past week but this is the first i've seen this." She started to sound concerned. Just what was Kouta exactly? Did anyone else at Maple House know about this?

"It doesn't matter." Mariko said rather sternly. "No one is going to kill my father."

Kouta and Lucy were standing side by side, an intense battle was about to happen. Lucy looked over at Kouta, his black and red eye out. She had always wanted to be with Kouta again, but never expected it would be in a fight. She ran at Mariko, trying to get her within range of her vectors. Mariko just grinned and sent hers out. Lucy was surprised to not only see them visibly, but see how long they are. She hit it in the face, stomach, and solar plexus all at once. She flew back behind Kouta who watched the whole thing before turning to Mariko and glaring at her.

"Don't get in my way!" She ordered him. He didn't listen, instead in the blink of an eye he was upon her. _Fast_, she thought as she used her vectors to move her out of the way of an uppercut. Before she could retaliate he came at her again with a barrage of punches. She managed to avoid them all then sent out two of her vectors when she managed to get some more space between them. Kouta jumped back out of the way and landed farther back, sliding a bit as he landed. He was now out of her range, and he might be able to get closer to her again if he planned it right. He wanted to avoid having to use his kagune if possible. He was already revealing much more than he wanted to.

_How is Kouta this fast?_ Nana thought. _Just what is he?_

"Nana!" Her thoughts were interrupted when Kurama called her name. "Are you alright to help Mariko out?" He asked.

"I..." She wasn't sure. "I don't think I can fight Kouta, not even now." She began to run off "So i'll just go after Lucy! Mariko, you take Kouta."

"Nana, wait!" Kouta tried to stop her. As he did, his right arm came into Mariko's range, and she used this distraction to cut it off. Blood shout out as his right arm was severed and went flying into the air. It landed on the ground right next to him. "AAAAHHHH!" He cried out in pain.

"Kouta!" Lucy shouted out in concern. She didn't see Nana's vector coming as it decked her in the face. She slid across the ground and landed face down. She manaed to push herself up enough to see Kouta kneeling there.

"There, now you learned your lesson. Don't interfere." Mariko old him. He beamed his eyes at her in anger. He reached over and grabbed his right arm with his left. Unsure of what he was doing, Mariko just watched as he put it back on his shoulder where it would go. Then, bright red little tendrils reached out from his shoulder and grabbed onto this arm. Everyone watched as his arm reattached to his body, and he swung his elbow back and forth afterwards to make sure it was functioning properly. "What?!" Mariko was shocked to see that, her mouth open.

"Sorry, but..." He rushed at her again. "I'm not going down that easy!" He yelled, his right sleeve fell off his arm as he lunged at her as that could not reattach itself to his shirt. Mariko sent out one of her vectors, but deliberatley weakened it so that it was invisible. She grinned as she went it out to finish him off. But to her surprise he vaulted over it and kept coming at her mid air, delivering a swift kick to her face when he got close enough, sending her flying back.

"How?" She asked as she sat up, wiping blood from her mouth. "How did you avoid my vector? I even weakened it so that it wouldn't be visible."

"Is that what you call those arms of yours?" Kouta asked. "Well to answer your question, I might not be able to see it, but my other senses are heightened. So to me it was too loud." She and the other looked at Kouta, surprised to hear that. He could hear her vectors? With that, he could easily take on Nana as well. Mariko got back on her feet. "Now..." He stopped when he found he couldn't move forward anymore. A vector made itself visible on the ground, Mariko had snaked a vector as quietly as possible over to him when he was talking, and sprung a trap when he tried to move. She grinned at him.

"You talk too much." She told him as she lifted him up by the ankle and threw him into the dirt. She lunged forward so that he was in her range down and sent down an assault of her many vectors to beat him into the ground as he lay there. He was beaten and bruised, some blood coming out of his wounds as well. Lucy watched in horror as he was assaulted and beaten up. "Now stay down." She ordered, then walking over to a bruised Lucy. She glared at Mariko as she walked forward. But much to heir surprised, Kouta got up from the dirt and crawled in between them. He held out his hand and tired to push Mariko away. "What are you doing? Do you want to die?"

"Don't..." He spoke softly.

"What?"

"Don't..." He repeated a bit more loudly, now turning himself to directly face Mariko. He popped his head and he looked angry. "Don't you dare hurt my family!" He shouted. She was confused, but before she had time to ask something happened. A large red tentacle like appendage came out from Kouta's back and made a b-line for Mariko. She used her vectors to fly back as the thing stayed just in inch away from her face. It was long too, about as long as her vectors reach was. It then retracted back as Kouta stood up. 3 more emerged as well, Kouta's kagune was now out, and everyone stared in awe.

"What... what is that?" Nana wondered. In truth, Kouta didn't meant to bring it out. But an urge to protect Lucy made it come out and now his rinkaku was on full display.

"Kouta..." Lucy spoke in amazement.

"You stay back." He told her. "I'm not going to let anyone hurt you." His words touched her deeply. Even though he remembered what she did, he was still going to protect her. She wondered why, and if it had something to do with him not being human either.

Kouta charged Mariko once more, using his rinkaku to swat at her from afar as she used her vectors to try and slice him. They both attacked and evaded each other's attacks in a skillful display, eventually swapping positions from where they first were. Kouta swung low with his kagune to sweep and she jumped back and landed on teh ground with her vectors.

Beep, beep

The tone of a cell phone interrupted their battle. Everyone looked down at a small flip phone that was beeping, and it was half a meter away from Lucy. Shirakawa and Mariko stared at it in horror. Why did it have to be so close to Lucy. She took notice of this as well and got to her feet. Shirakawa had to think fast.

"Lucy!" She yelled out and got her attention. "Fight me!" She picked up a piece of broken pipe off the ground.

"Shirakawa, don't!" Kurama shouted.

"Hiyaa!" She charged at Lucy with the pipe, while Lucy just looked at her like she was an utter idiot. She then noticed Mariko closing in, but she was going for the phone. Lucy used one of her vectors to pick it up and it landed in her hands.

"Is this what you wanted?" She asked Shirakawa. She cursed herself for not being able to distract her long enough for them to retrieve the timer.

"Shirakawa, what on earth do you think you're doing?" Kurama asked. She dropped the pipe down next to her and walked over to him. She leaned in close and whispered to him.

"There are bombs placed inside of #35, that phone is the remote timer. If the code isn't entered in 5 minutes they'll go off."

"What?!" The two of them looked to see it was not Kurama who yelled in surprised but Kouta. "You put a bomb inside her?" Lucy looked over at him surprised.

"Damn it." Shirakawa cursed in a normal tone. "I forgot about his super-hearing."

"Well then, this really shifts things in our favor then doesn't it?" Lucy replied in a satisfied tone.

"Lucy." Mariko called out. "Give me back the remote." She gritted her teeth.

"Go get it." She tossed it aside and over the railing. Mariko lunged for it as fast as she could, extending a vector out to grab it right before it hit the water.

"That was close." She breathed with a sigh of relief as she pulled it back.

"Look out!" Nana cried out. It was too late. Mariko turned to see Kouta had now gripped her leg with his kagune. He squeezed around her knee and broke her leg with an audible 'snap!'. Mariko cried out in pain and fell to the ground, clutching her leg. "Ow, ow, ow! My leg!" She began to tear in pain. Lucy was now right above her and looked down at her, the timer back in her hands again.

"Well, now that you're in such intense pain you can't use your vectors." She told her stoically.

"No!" Kurama protested, trying to run to help Mariko. He instead received a swift blow to the side of the head from one of Kouta's rinkaku. He flew threw their and slid down on the ground on his side.

"Papa!" Nana shouted out, running over to his side.

"Halt!" He ordered her. Nana stopped in her tracks and looked worriedly over at her adoptive father.

"Lucy, if it will satisfy you then kill me. But let Mariko go, I beg of you." Lucy looked over at him evilly.

"Oh, now it seems the power has shifted. And what will you do if I kill you both?" She taunted.

"NO WAY!" Nana yelled at her. "I won't let you kill my Papa!"

"Nana..." Kurama called her sympathetically, she turned her attention to him. "It's ok Nana, because i've done a lot of things wrong myself, and if I have to die in order to save you and Mariko then I will accept that. I can think of no better use of my life."

"Papa..." She began to tear up.

"Daddy..." Mariko as well.

"You know, I do still owe you one." Lucy told him in a sinister tone.

"You can't!" Shirakwa protested.

"Lucy please..." Nana pleaded. "Don't kill Mariko if Papa will die for her." Lucy just smiled evilly. "No, you can't!"

"Lucy!" Kouta shouted, making her look at him. He outstretched his hand to her. "Give me the remote." He sounded serious. Lucy eyed him up, unsure of what he was thinking. But he had just fought beside her, something no one had ever done before and she did still love him. She handed him the phone. He walked over to Kurama with the phone in hand.

"Kouta..." Nana looked over at him with tearful eyes. "Why?" Why was Kouta going to do it? Wasn't he her friend? He should know what it's like to have your family be killed right in front of you. He soon was standing in front of Director Kurama, who just looked up at the boy.

"Please, don't hurt Mariko. That's all i'm asking..." He stopped and looked down in surprise when Kouta dropped the phone on him.

"There, now take your daughter and leave." Kouta instructed him, turning to face away from him and retracting his kagune back into his body.

"What?" Kurama asked confused. Everyone else was watching this in surprise as well.

"You heard me, stop those bombs and then take your daughter and get out of here. Don't come after Lucy or my family ever again."

"You can't be serious. After everything she's done?"

"I said get out!" Kouta yelled a bit more harshly. He looked down at the ground, and Lucy could see tears on his face. He turned around to Kurama again. "Please... don't make me have to kill somebody." He begged as tears streamed down his face. Kurama was speechless at this, while the others just watched. Lucy began to to gently smile at Kouta. He really was a kind person, she loved that about him. Even though he was no longer human, he still refused to kill. Kurama then regained himself and stood up.

"Alright, you win. We'll go our separate ways from here." He stood up. "Shirakawa, the passcode."

"The cancellation code is 353574." She told him. He input the digits in the remote with a beep each time he pressed a button. The phone then beeped 3 times as the explosives inside Mariko were disabled. Kouta walked over to Lucy and looked down at Mariko.

"Sorry about your leg, I just couldn't think of any other way to stop you." He apologized while rubbing the back of his head. She was caught a little off guard by his comment.

"It... it'll be alright. I'm actually very thankful you spared us." She told him, feeling a little bit awkward. Kurama then walked over to his daughter and picked her up. Carrying her in his arms.

"Let's go Mariko."

"Does this mean we can finally live together." She asked cheerfully.

"Yes, but we have to go on the run." He explained. "The Chief doesn't leave loose ends, and there's no way he's just going to let you go."

"We'll be ok, as long as we're together." She smiled up at him, and he smiled down at her.

"Director." Shirwakawa called him. "So long as there are those bombs inside Mariko, the Chief may use them if he gets the chance." He looked rather serious after that, and there was a heavy silence in the air.

"Hey!" Kouta called and got his attention. "Kamakura General Hospital, find Dr. Kaimei and tell him you need his help for a private matter. Tell him Kouta sent you, he'll help you out." Kurama had a rather surprised expression on his face after Kouta gave him those instructions.

"But... why would you help us out?" He asked.

"I dunno, it just feels like the right thing to do." Kouta told them, then offering a friendly smile after he did. Kurama was surprised by his kindness at first, but smiled back at him.

"Thank you." He then turned his attention to Lucy and his smile faded. "Keep a close eye on her."

"Don't worry I will."

"What?!" Lucy asked sounding rather surprised herself. Kouta turned to her. "But, after what I did you to you... to your family..." She began to cry a little. "Kouta, you still want me to return home with you."

"Of course." He reply was almost instant, not requiring any thought. She looked stunned, tears still on her face. "I mean where else would you go?" he turned to face her completely. "But don't get me wrong. I can't forgive what you did to Kanae and my dad so easily. Things will never be as they once were between us." She began to feel hurt, and showed it too. "But, I can't just kick you out to the curb. Besides..." He pointed to his left eye. "I guess us monsters have to look out for each other." She was still crying a little, in a mix of both happiness and sadness. She lost her chance to ever be with Kouta, he may never forgive her for what she did. But he would never abandon her, and that alone meant more to her than anything.

"Kouta... thank you."

"Nana." Kurama got her attention as she was rather silent the whole time. "You should go with your friends."

"But, I wanna be with Papa." She protested.

"I know. But we can't right now. It wouldn't be safe. But I promise you that one day I will return for you."

She was silent for a moment. "Promise?"

"Promise." He confirmed his vows to return to her.

"Ok, then Nana will go with her friends and wait for Papa to return." She smiled at him.

"I shall return to the facility then, and keep acting as an informant." Shirakawa told them.

"Stay safe Shirakawa." Kurama wished her off. She nodded and returned for the helicopter that took her there. Kurama and Mariko went their separate ways from Kouta, Lucy, and Nana. The three of them walked back the way they came down that bridge to return to Maple House. The police had been ordered to clear out by then, and there was no one on the bridge. Which was a stroke of luck, they might have to answer some serious questions if they were seen. The three of them walked through the town at night, trying to avoid public places as Kouta's kakugan was still out. At one point, Nana decided to speak up about it.

"Hey Kouta..."

"Huh, what is it?"

"It's just... what are you exactly?" She sounded rather nervous when asking him, afraid she might cross a line. Lucy looked over to him as well, also wondering herself. He was silent for a moment.

"Well I guess I could ask you the same." He responded.

"Wh-what?"

"Nana..." He sounded a lot more stern than usual. "Let's just say, that there are some things better left unsaid."

"Ah..." She decided to say nothing more. He clearly wasn't in the mood to tell them, and it was probably for a reason. She truly had no idea how grave that reason was. They were mostly silent for the walk back, until the stairs to Maple House were in view. "We're finally here. The walk felt much longer than usual." Nana sighed. They looked like a mess. She and Lucy were both bruised, Lucy more so than her, and Kouta was beaten and his right sleeve was missing. Not only that, but his eye still hadn't returned to normal. Out of nowhere, he suddenly gripped it and fell to his knees. "Kouta!" Nana and Lucy both rushed to his side.

"Kouta, are you alright?" Lucy asked him sounding worried. He didn't say anything, he just moaned and got back up to his feet, still covering his eye.

"There you guys are!" A woman called down from atop the steps. The three of them looked up to see the otehr residents were dressed to go out and look themselves. Yuka was at the front of them and looking down at them in both worry and frustration. "Where have you been? We were worried sick?" She shouted as she made her way down the steps. Kouta swiftly turned away from her and began to walk the other way.

"Kouta, where are you going?" Nana asked.

"I need... to go somewhere." He told them. He was feeling his ghoul instincts taking over. They were telling him to hunt. He had to make it to the hospital, he couldn't let his family see his other side.

"Where on earth do you think you're going?" Yuka scolded. HE didn't listen, instead walking away at a slow pace. He then suddenly fell down again, this time on his hands and knees.

"Kouta!" Mayu shouted in concern for him and went over to help.

"Stay..." He said quietly.

"What? Kouta what did you say?" Yuka asked.

"Stay... away..." He was more audible this time, but his voice sounded... different.

"Kouta... what's wrong?" Mayu asked, starting to come closer again.

"Stay away... from me." He now warned. Everyone was looking at him in concern. Lucy drew closer to him and was standing by him. He didn't have the urge to hunt her for some reason, maybe it had to do with her being not human. Mayu drew closer and was reaching for him.

"Kouta..." She placed a hand on his shoulder.

The next few moments were a blur. Everything went black for Kouta, when he started to come too again he was on all fours, but now facing the other direction for some reason. Yuka was bent over and pushing him, she was crying and trying to say something. When it became clear she kept telling him to get off. "What are you doing? Get off, please get off! Get off of her!" She was pleading. He noticed Nozomi behind her, and she was looking frightened at him. Then he looked down, there was blood in his mouth. And... flesh. He began to come too quicker and looked lower. Mayu was on the ground, tears streaming down her face as she sobbed uncontrollably. She was covered in blood, her own blood. Kouta then realized, her had her forearm in her mouth, and his kakugan still was out. After he had realized what he had done it returned to normal, and he released his grip on Mayu's arm. Almost as soon as he released her she scuttled back away from him, still crying uncontrollably. Yuka went over and held her like she was her own child. Kouta noticed Nana was near Yuka now too, looking down at Kouta with her own expression of fright. He looked behind him and saw Lucy was giving him the same look. When she saw what he had done, she too began to fel a sense of fear. She began to really wonder what he was. He looked away from her and his eyes widened in horror of his own actions. He had not only assaulted Mayu, but finally shown his dark side to everyone close to him. "What the hell is wrong with you?" Yuka asked, still protecting Mayu.

"UWAAAAA!" Kouta shouted out, no longer able to hold it back. "I'M SORRY, I'M SORRY, I'M SO SORRY!" He sat back against a wall, clutching at his own head. He began to cry uncontrollably himself, with an expression of great shock across his face. His friends all just watched as he came to realize the horror of what he had just done.

"Kouta, why did you do that?" Yuka asked, tears on her face as well. He hung his head down.

"I'm so fucked up."


	5. The Truth Unraveled

Most of the residents of Maple House were all gathered in a hospital room. All except for Kouta, who was elsewhere in the hospital. Mayu was sitting on a hospital bed, she had now changed into a plain black t-shirt when Dr. Kaimei gave her stitches. She had been given numerous stitches in her right forearm where Kouta had bit her, the incident still fresh in everyone's minds. Yuka was standing by her bedside, while Nozomi and Nana were both sitting down in chairs nearby. Lucy was standing up against a wall with her arms crossed. They were all silent, no one really knew what to say about what had happened or about Kouta. He had taken in most of them when they needed a place to stay, he had always been so kind. So him attacking Mayu out of nowhere, and doing it so viciously was a shock to all of them. Especially Yuka and Lucy who had both known him for much longer. Lucy along with Nana were both now wondering more than ever what he really was, theorizing that it had something to do with his sudden outburst. It was the only thing that made sense to the two of them, while the others were all left in the dark. They all looked when the door to the hospital room opened and Dr. Kaimei had stepped in.

"Sorry about the wait, my assistant is running me ragged today." He apologized with a friendly smile. This was their second time meeting Kouta's employer. The first is when they all arrived there earlier and asked for him to help Mayu. He agreed without question at the time and took Kouta aside before he gave help to Mayu. Afterwards he had to leave again and returned after a little while longer this time. He then walked across the room to the curtain divider. "Perhaps you know these two he sent to me earlier tonight?" He pulled the curtain divider back to reveal that Kurama and Mariko were also in the room. She was lying down in a hospital bed with a patient's gown on, while he sat in a chair by her side. The two of them looked over to see Nana and Lucy were in the room as well. Nana and Lucy were surprised to see them as well.

"Papa." Nana spoke. The others all focused on him.

"Nana, this is your papa?" Mayu asked.

"Mhmm."

"Ah, then some of you do know each other." Dr. Kaimei noted. "First he sends me these two with bombs inside the girl, then all of you come."

"Bombs?" Yuka asked startled. What on earth was Kouta doing?

"Yes, a few remote controlled explosives. Small but if they went off the would yield a large result."

"Nana..." Kurama spoke as he looked over at her. "What are you doing here?" Nana didn't know what to stay, and remained silent for a moment. It was Mayu who answered.

"Kouta attacked me." She stated bluntly.

"He attacked you?" Kurama was unsure if he had just heard her right. She nodded and confirmed he did.

"It all happened so fast, he was kneeling on the ground telling us not to come near him... Then I tried to help him, and next thing I know..." She began to teat up. "I was on the ground, and he was biting my arm." Kurama and Mariko both looked very shocked at this. "And his eye... there was something with his eye." She choked through tears.

"It was black and red right?" Mariko spoke up. Mayu began to cease her crying when she heard this. "His left eye right? I saw it too."

"Wait, were you with Kouta and Nana earlier?" Yuka asked them? "What happened? Why was Kouta's eye like that?" Dr. Kaimei listened in very intently for a distance.

"...We got into a fight." Mariko explained.

"A fight?"

"Yes, over her." She turned to Lucy, who just stared at her from across the room.

"Nyu?" Yuka was shocked, all eyes were not on her.

"Don't look at me, they attacked me first." She told them.

"What? Someone please tell me what's going on! Nyu, why are you talking like that?" Yuka shouted, desperate for answers.

"The truth is, none of the girls in this room with horns are human." Kurama finally told her. She looked over at him, very surprised. Mayu and Nozomi both listened closely as well. "They're a new breed of creatures, known as Diclonius, as they're destined to wipe out the human race."

"Wh-what?" Yuka asked in fear.

"Aside from their horns, they have one other feature that makes them different from us. Extra sets of invisible hands, known as vectors. The human eye can't detect them, but they can pass through or destroy objects on touch. They also have a very special purpose. To carry the virus that passes the Diclonius gene onto the infected's children. That is how they will wipe us out. It'll start with a large number of horned children being born, and one day it'll evolve into full out war." The three human girls were all looking very concerned right now. "All with the queen at their head." He looked over intently at Lucy, then everyone else did as well.

"Wait... are you saying, that Nyu is supposed to cause the death of everyone?" Yuka asked. "That's crazy!"

"The girl you know as Nyu and the girl you see before you are two entirely different people That girl is Lucy, the Queen Diclonius."

"Is this... is this correct Nyu?" Yuka asked her. Lucy was silent for a moment.

"It is." She stated. "When I escaped from the research facility offshore, I sustained a head injury and my personality split. The girl you know as Nyu, is the ideal self I created within my mind."

"Ideal self?" Mayu asked. "What do you mean?"

"Before I met you guys, my life was a living hell. I had always been treated different, beaten down, and betrayed. All because I have horns on my head. The side of me that is Nyu, that is what I would have been like if I was born normal, without horns."

"So... even your parents mistreated you?" Mayu asked, having feeling som relation to that from her own experiences.

"I never met my parents. I was abandoned in the woods and left to die when I was but a baby."

"That's horrible!" Yuka exclaimed.

"That's no excuse!" Kurama interjected. "That is no excuse for the things you have done, for the people you have killed."

"Killed?" Mayu responded wide eyed, the other two girls who had no diea either both seemed equally as shocked. The both looked back at Lucy.

"He's right... I have killed a lot of people."

"That's right, someone your friends here probably knew too. Isn't that right?" Kurama taunted her. She shot him an evil look. "Go on, tell them." He told her stoically. Bastard, he was pulling the same thing she had before on him.

"Kanae..." She spoke udner her breath.

"What?" Yuka asked.

"Kanae... and Kouta's father. I am responsible for their deaths." She was audible this time, and Yuka took a step back and looked at her in horror.

"You... 8 years ago, that was you?" Lucy just hung her head.

"Kanae... where have I heard that name before?" The doctor rubbed his chin as he thought.

"She... she was Kouta's little sister." Yuka told him, gritting her teeth and fighting back tears. "And you killed them you monster!" Yuka shouted at Lucy. Nana and Mariko both looked over to Lucy, who they were afraid was going to snap and attack that girl. Instead Lucy just looekd at her with a surprised expression, then tears started to form.

"I... i'm so sorry!" She fell to her knees. "I have lived my life up until now, wanting to make it up to Kouta. I did something horrible, I know I don't deserve his forgiveness. But it's all I want." She began to sob there on the ground. She was the most powerful one in the room, and she was completely helpless right now.

"I thought he had said that she became ill and passed away." Dr. Kaimei noted. Lucy wiped tears from her eyes.

"He lost his memory." Yuka explained softly, as if she was starting to hurt from all this too. "He forgot about his life before then, and created new memories where his sister passed away and his dad died in a car crash."

"Hmmm, repressed memories." The doctor tapped his chin. "That's interesting, does he know about all this?"

"No." Yuka stated.

"He does now." Lucy corrected. "He got his memories back now. He knows what I really am, just a monster." She started to tear up again.

"That just leaves one question." Mariko stated. "What is he?" She turned to Dr. Kaimei. "Doctor, you said he's your assistant, do you know?" He was silent. "You do don't you? Tell us, what was with his eye, and what wre those things that came out of his back?"

"What things?" Yuka asked.

"I don't know, they were four glowing red appendages. They came out of his back when we fought."

"So, you saw them then?" Dr. Kaimei asked, sounding rather solemn. Mariko nodded.

"Tell me... just what did I fight back there? What is he?" Dr. Kaimei said nothing again, instead turning and locking the door behind him.

"Before I explain, I have to have everyone's word that what i'm about to tell you will not leave this room. Because if it does..." He turned to them. "Kouta's life will be in grave danger." There was a wave of shock that ran through the room. This was a very serious matter. Everyone in that room nodded, and Lucy got back to her feet.

"Kouta isn't human either." Dr. Kaimei began. "He's what's known as a Ghoul. One way to identify a ghoul is the kakugan, or the eyes." He closed his eyes for a second, then when he opened them, they were both now black with red iris. Everyone in the room was caught by surprise to see this.

"You're a ghoul too?" Yuka asked. He nodded.

"But wait, only Kouta's left eye did that." Nana stated.

"Indeed, very good. You see, Kouta isn't entirely ghoul either. He's only a half-ghoul."

"Half-ghoul? What do you mean?" Yuka asked.

"You see, Kouta was born human. But he was in an accident awhile back, and recieved a transplant from a ghoul. After that, he then received the traits of a ghoul." Yuka's eye widened in surprise.

"You mean, over a year ago when he was in Tokyo?"

"Yes, that incident. Tell me, you've been living with him. Have you noticed any strange dietary habits? Regurgitation, a lack of appetite?"

"Ah!" Yuka did indeed notice. "Yes, we found he had been throwing up after meals. We thought it was just an eating disorder. Also, ever since he started living here he's been drinking a lot of coffee, which is odd because last time he visited he hated it."

"Yes, well there is a reason for that." He smiled and closed his eyes, reverting them back to normal. "You see, a Ghoul can not eat most human foods, only coffee and water. Eating food that you would typically eat would make a ghoul very sick and weak."

"But, then why didn't he tell us that?" Mayu asked.

"Because he didn't want you to know the truth." He sounded much more serious now and his smile faded. "Because the truth is, the main source of nutrition for ghouls... is human flesh." A mix of both shock and horror hit everyone in that room then. The truth was out, Kouta was a monster himself. Lucy thought back to when he said he was a monster too. She had no idea what he meant, but this... she felt bad for him, she understood what it was like to feel like a monster herself.

"So that means... Kouta was trying to eat me?" Mayu asked, wide eyed.

"Well yes, but in a sense it also wasn't Kouta."

"What?" Mayu asked confused.

"While us ghouls do not requite nourishment as often as humans, our hunger can prove to be quite the handful. A starved ghoul will attack anyone, friend or foe alike. Kouta hasn't exactly been eating regularly either. He's been feeding from spare blood packs here at the hospital, which only help curb his hunger. The excitement from battle seemed to rile him up inside and he went into hunt mode. He tried to hold out as long as he could, but in the end a ghoul's hunger will always win over their sanity."

"So that's why he was trying to tell us to get away." Mayu realized. Dr. Kaimei nodded.

"But then..." Yuka spoke up, fighting back tears. "How many people has he killed? How many people had to die in order for him to continue living?"

"Zero." The Doctor's answer surprised her. "I know for a fact that Kouta has never killed anyone." His answer surprised her. "Many people die every day, that is simply an unavoidable fact of life. There are ways in which ghouls can gain access to those who have already died and use them for food. Which allows us to live peacefully among humans and hide our true identities." His answer came as a relief to her. Yuka was glad to hear that Kouta had not turned into a killer, but none the less this was all quite a lot for her.

"Where is he now?"

"He's 'feeding'." The Doctor's implications still sent chills down everyone's spines. "Given the circumstances, I think it might be best for him to return to Tokyo to be with his own kind. He has friends and colleagues there who will..."

"No." Yuka interjected suddenly. "I want to see him." She insisted. He looked at her rather sternly, then nodded. He turned around and went to unlock the door.

"Remember, this can never leave this room. Because if it does, Kouta's life will be in grave danger, as well as the people who live with him. You may be in danger too." He reminded them sternly. He unlocked the door and Yuka went to follow him, and surprisingly the rest of the residents of Maple House did as well. He looked back in surprise. "All of you are coming to see him too?"

"Yes, he's part of this family. We wish to see him." Nozomi told the Doctor. He smiled back at her, glad that Kouta had such devoted friends and then led them out of the room. He took them down the hall a short distance and led teh too his office. He opened the door and they found Kouta in there, the lights were all out and it was dark in the office. He was sitting in a chair up against a wall with a cup of coffee in his hands. He has slumped down and looking down at his coffee, currently in deep thought. He looked up to see Dr. Kaimei leading others into the room, only to look back down again in shame. "I'll leave you all alone in here for awhile. I need to check up on my other patients." He told the residents of Maple House as they all entered the house as they entered the room. He closed the door behind them to leave them discuss things among themselves. Yuka took a seat right next to Kouta while the others formed a semi-circle around him.

"Hey guys." He greeted them with a gloom tone.

"Kouta, Dr. Kaimei told us everything." Yuka told him. "About what you really are, and about... your eating habits." Kouta begna to look rather intense now as he stared down. Fear filling him as he found out they knew the truth about him. "I just want to know, why didn't you tell us sooner? We wouldn't have made you eat all those things if you couldn't."

"Because... I couldn't bring myself to it... to tell everyone that i'm a monster." He told her in the same tone.

"Kouta..." She put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "That's not true. I know it's not easy, it must be pretty rough on you. But you're still you, and that's all I care about. In fact, I think it's safe to say that's what we all care about." He looked up to see a bunch of smiles at him from everyone else.

"You guys..."

"Kouta." Mayu approached him. He stared up at her. "I forgive you for attacking me. I know that you didn't mean to do it, and that you only did it because you were starved. I'm not mad, in fact... I think I would really miss you if you were gone." He was surprised at her reaction and did not know what to say.

"Kouta, please." Yuka was starting to tear up a little. "Please come back to Maple Inn with us." He looked at the other residents of Maple House.

"You guys really want me to come back?... Even after know what I am?" He asked, now starting to sound more like his normal self. They all nodded, and he averted his gaze once more.

"Ok." He said, then looking back to them and smiling. "I'll come back home." They were all smiling now, they might not have looked like much but together they were a family. The supported each other through the good times and the bad.

"What about her?" Nana asked, turning her gaze towards Lucy. She looked down, away from her.

"What do you mean?" Kouta asked her.

"They know." Lucy told them. "They know about everything, there's no point in trying to hide it."

"Oh, I see..." He stood up. "Lucy..." He placed his hand on her shoulder "Please come back home with us."

"You... want me to come back with you?" He nodded, and she looked around to see all of her room mates were giving her sympathetic looks.

"Nyu." Yuka stood up and came over to her. "I think I understand why you didn't tell us. You wanted to stay with us, you wanted to continue being Nyu didn't you?" Lucy didn't say anything back, she didn't know how to respond. Instead she simply nodded and fought back tears.

"Whether you're Nyu or this you, you're welcome to stay with us. Maple House will always be a place for you." She was looking at him while starting to cry, even after all she had done he was still showing her kindness.

"Kouta, I..." She trailed off. "I don't deserve it."

"Lucy." He now had both hands on her shoulders. "What you did was wrong, maybe even unforgivable for most people. But, I know you've lived a hard and unforgiving life. I think it's about time you had a break. Please come back home, it wouldn't be the same without you." He pulled her into a warm embrace, finally hugging her like she wanted all those years ago. Even more surprising was that Yuka joined in and hugged her as well. Before she knew it all of the residents of Maple Inn were around her in a group hug. She could no longer hold back the tears.

_What are you doing?_ Her inner voice hissed.

She didn't care, she finally had friends.

_Stop it._

She finally had a place to call home.

_They're just going to betray you, just like always._

She knew it wasn't true, not this time. She lifted her arms and wrapped them around her friends that she cherished so dearly.

_Fool._

That voice no longer mattered to her. She had real physical people around her that would protect her and give her a place to stay and warm bed. She knew her ordeal wasn't over, and her peace might not last, but she was glad to finally have it.


	6. A short time of peace

Lucy awoke from her bed roll in her room at Maple House. She outstretched her arms and yawned, then soon after pulling them back against her and shivering. It was cold throughout the house as the winter months had rolled in. She put on a sweatshirt over her head before she headed down the hall to join her friends. She found them all awaiting her downstairs, gathered around the table. "Good morning!" The all greeted her.

"Morning." She greeted them back in a groggy voice with a little smile. She sat down at her place at the table to join her friends. There was already a warm bowl of somen noodles in front of her and a cup of coffee. She and Kouta were the only ones in that house who drank the stuff. Kouta had acquired a taste for it after starting to drink it after he worked at Anteiku, and Lucy had liked it after she first tried some her first night back after the hospital. That was 6 months ago. Things had stayed peaceful and quiet there ever since, and that's the way she wanted it. She enjoyed the quiet and wanted things to stay calm. She had enough fighting and killing to last her several lifetimes. She'd rather just live a normal life in that house with all of her friends. But she knew that couldn't happen. The Diclonius Research Institute was still up and running, and they would continue to hunt her down as long as she lived and as long as it still remained intact. Which meant either she was going to die or she was going to have to destroy that entire island. She really hoped it would be the latter and she could continue living with Kouta and her friends. So she enjoyed this short time of peace while she could, and enjoyed her meal surrounded by all of her close friends.

* * *

That night Kouta, Yuka, and Lucy went out to walk Nozomi home. She had been staying with everyone at Maple House while she was studying for her exams, but her father called and said they were going to go visit her sick aunt in the hospital just north of Kyoto. He wanted her home that night so they could leave early the next morning to drive over to her. They agreed and were going to walk home with her since it was late. Nana and Mayu were staying at home and watching over the place. Yuka greeted them before closing the sliding shoji door to the place and leaving with her friends. "Hey guys, if it's not too much to ask can we stop at the clothes store after we drop Nozomi off? I want to get some cute new dresses for when spring comes around." She asked her friends with a smile.

"Sure, fine by me." Kouta responded.

"Alright." Lucy told her.

The four of them took a walk over to Nozomi's place of residence, an apartment she lived in with her father. They said their goodbyes at the door. Then the other three made their way down a few streets to the locally owned clothing store. They went inside for Yuka to look for some new apparel for spring.

Meanwhile, on the outskirts of town, a mysterious figure enters Kamakura. He is dressed in a black trench coat with black fedora and sunglasses. He had a metal tank on his back with a radar like device attached to it. He looked down and saw two blips on it. "Oh, what's this? There's two in the area? Hmm, which one is Lucy? Eanie, meanie, minie, this one!" He pointed to one of the blips and decided to follow it, all the way to the Maple Inn.

* * *

Awhile later, the three friends emerged from the store, with Yuka carrying a large bag full of new clothes. She left with a delightful smile on her face, satisfied with her purchase. "Ah, thank you guys. I'll tel you what, for coming with me how about we go to that coffee shop a few blocks down the street? my treat."

"Really, are you sure?" Lucy asked.

"Of course, think of it as my way of saying thank you."

"That sounds great, thanks Yuka." Kouta thanked her with a smile. The three friends then walked down the sidewalk and headed over to the coffee shop about 3 blocks down the street. When they walked about half a block however, Kouta suddenly stopped in his tracks. Yuka and Lucy both walked forward a step before noticing then turned around to him. he sniffed the air twice, and his face froze.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Yuka asked sounding concerned.

"There's an odd scent in the air, there's something off about it." He told her.

"Huh, what do you mean?"

"I don't know, it's just... something's not right." He turned around as to head back. "Come on, let's go back to Maple House. We can go for coffee some other time."

"Well alright..." Yuka was feeling a bit frightened as well as concerned. She and Lucy both followed close behind Kouta as they instead made their way back home. Yuka felt as if something was not right though, Kouta was acting odd. It was almost as if something spooked him. Lucy was concerned as well, but for a different reason. She knew first hand just how heightened Kouta's senses were. If he felt that something was amiss it probably was. She was afraid her short time of peace might be over already. He was almost like an animal with a 6th sense, able to sense imminent danger. She honestly hoped that he was wrong. How wrong she was.

* * *

Back at Maple House, Nana was lying on the dining room floor, covered in blood. She had been shot twice in the abdomen with poisoned spike balls from the mysterious man's crossbow. Mayu was in the hallway with her shirt ripped off, and he was pinning her down with his crossbow aimed at her. He was planning on 'having some fun' with her, but she insisted on putting up a fight. She even managed to hit him over the head with the phone after calling Bando for help. He intended to make her pay by blasting her square in the face with a shot from his bow. She looked over to an unconscious Wanta. He took a pretty hard kick after coming to save her, and may even be dead. _Wanta, you'll recognize me even if my face is mutilated, right?_ She thought to herself. She then simply held her breath and waited to have her face torn apart.

Then out of nowhere, the stranger received a hard kick in the face and was sent skidding down the hallway. "What the hell, were you trying to rape her you fucking pedo?" A gruff voice asked above her. Mayu looked up to see Bando had come just in the nick of time.

"Bando!" She cried out in joy at seeing him. The mystery man looked down the hall to see his crossbow was now far away from him at the other end.

"There seems to be a misunderstanding." He tried to defend, only to receive a hard punch in the face from Bando.

"There's no misunderstanding, you're sick in the head. Now i'm gonna have to put a hole in you." He punched the man again and sent him even farther down the hall. This however ended up backfiring, as he was now close enough to grab his crossbow.

"Bando, watch out!" Mayu tried to warn him. It was too late, the unknown man had already grabbed his crossbow and fired at Bando. A spike ball hit him hard in the side and he fell down on his ass from it.

"Ahahahaha!" The sick man cried out. "Hurts doesn't it?" He prodded as Bando held his hand near the wound in his side and gave a face of extreme pain. "Those spikes are covered in a special neurotoxin that causes consent pain for about half an hour. That shout keep you subdued long enough for me to put a hole in you." He took aim with the crossbow at Bando again. He was surprised to see Bando was going to attempt to take it out. "You can't remove it you know, it'll only cause more pain." Bando didn't listen, he grabbed hold of it and pulled it hard as he could. He ripped it right out of his side and took the man with the sunglasses by surprise. _A prosthetic arm?_ He came to realize. Bando then stood up and held it back to pitch it. "Wait, there seems to be a misunderstanding."

"MY ASS THERE IS!" He retorted, throwing the spike ball back. The mysterious man tried to flee from the scene, only to be hit in the ass with his his weapon. He yelped in pain and fled from the scene. "Get back here!" Bando yelled, pulling out his Desert Eagle. It was loaded with special tungsten bullets for a very special opponent he had in mind. But Mayu grabbed onto his arm.

"No, you can't!" She cried.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Please, you don't have to kill anyone. He won't be a problem anymore, i'm sure of it." She begged him not to kill. He grunted but decided to listen to her. He was free of his debt to her anyway.

A short while later, Nana was bandaged up and resting in her bed. Bando hand stayed to help tend to her wounds and put her to bed as well. Wanta was also up and about, as healthy as ever. They had also found that inside of that man's backpack was the remains of a diclonius girl. She was brutally torn apart and kept on minor life support while in the system. However he had kicked it on his way in and the girl was now dead. "All right, she's asleep now. She needs rest." Bando told Mayu after he came back downstairs. "And don't worry, i'll find a good place to bury that girl." He nodded over to the backpack. He put the cover back over it and slung it over his shoulder.

"Um... Bando." Mayu spoke up. "Thank you for saving."

"I was just repaying my debt, that was all." He told her as he headed out the door to Maple House. "See you around kid."

"We're home!" Kouta called out as he opened the gate to the Maple Inn. When he did, he was face to face with Bando. They both looked at each other surprised, then Bando looked over and noticed one of the girls. The one with the horns sticking out of her head, the girl who mutilated him and he vowed to kill. Lucy. Mayu knew immediately this meant trouble and she looked worried. "Umm, Mayu who's this?"

"So, it's you again." He glared at Lucy. She didn't show it, but inside she felt torn apart. He short period of peace with her friends had suddenly ended in the blink of an eye. Bando drew his gun and fired.


	7. Better off dead

The bullet fired from Bando's gun missed Lucy by inches. She was powerful enough to deflect even his special tungsten .50 AE bullets, but it was not her who deflected his shot. Kouta grabbed the gun and readjusted his aim in the blink of an eye. He was gripping the barrel of the handgun and holding away from Lucy. He was giving Bando a serious glare while he took hold of the gun. Bando was trying to struggle and get his firearm back away from Kouta but found he couldn't. Kouta was impossibly strong, there was no way some kid like him could be stronger than Bando. "What the hell? Let go you bastard!" Kouta listened and released his grip. Bando pulled the Desert Eagle away from Kouta. taking a step back. "Do you want to die?" He asked with great anger. He then glared over at Lucy, who just stood there watching things unfold. "Gah, my beef isn't with you anyway. It's her I want." He pointed a finger to her. "You're that bitch who mutilated my body, I will never forgive you. I'll break every bone if your god damn body!" He pushed his way past them and began to leave. "Let's go for a walk, this isn't the time or place."

"As you wish." Lucy responded in an almost evil tone.

"Then i'm coming too." Kouta interjected. Bando turned his head to look back at him, then a grin appeared on his face.

"Sure, the more the merrier." He responded with confidence.

"No, you can't!" Mayu tried to stop them. She didn't want Bando to kill Kouta and Lucy. She equally didn't want them to kill Bando after he just saved her life.

"Shaddup you little brat!" Bando yelled back to her. "I bet you thought it was funny. Watching me stumble around blindly, looking for the bitch that tore me apart back on the beach. Meanwhile she was sleeping safe and sound in this house with you."

"No, that's not it. I..."

"I don't wanna hear it!" He yelled. "I already repaid my debt to you. Now I don't wanna see your face ever again!" Mayu began to tear up.

"Mayu." Kouta called to her. "Don't worry, everything's going to be ok." He smiled at her, trying to reassure her. Mayu began to calm down, still upset at Bando's harsh words but coming to realize that Kouta wouldn't let him die. She nodded back to him and he turned to join Bando and Lucy for a walk. The three of them left through the gate of Maple House and left the place for another location. It was evident to all of them that a fight was about to go down, and to Yuka and Mayu it seemed that Kouta and Lucy were at an advantage with their powers. Yuka knew that they could beat him easily, and that Kouta would probably let him live. But still she couldn't shake a feeling down in the pit of her stomach that something bad was about to happen.

* * *

"Damn it, that bastard. If I see him again i'll fucking kill him!" The man with the sunglasses cursed as he managed to pry the spike ball from his ass. He was right beside a large rock on the beach along Kamakura. He had fled there after being wounded when Bando came in and rescued Mayu. He had to rethink his strategy, he was now without his Diclonius radar and had an extra hole in his ass. If he didn't find Lucy before that scientist girl she was going to cut off his manhood too. Arakawa, the assistant to Professor Kakuzawa back at the university, had been taken to the island of the Diclonius Research Institute. The Chief had ordered them both to go about tracking down Lucy, and they each made bets out of spite of one another. If he won, she had to be his pleasure slave. But if she won, she got to castrate him. He gritted his teeth and thought about how much he wanted to kill her now. His thoughts were interrupted when he heard people approaching. He his behind the boulder and watched a group of three people descend down the steps onto the beach. The first was Bando, the man who injured him back at that house. The unknown man gritted his teeth at the sight. But his attention quickly turned towards the woman in the middle. For following right behind Bando, was none other than Lucy. The man's eyes widened in surprise, his target had come right to him. He couldn't ask for it any better. There was also a third one, a boy following behind Lucy. He did not recognize the boy but did not care. He would probably have to die anyway.

The three of them reached the middle of the beach when Bando spoke up."Right here is good." He said, stopping right in his tracks and facing away from the two of them. "Do you remember this spot? This is where you defeated me the first time. I never forgot that day, I swore vengeance to matter what it took." He then turned to the two teenagers. "I've done a lot to prepare for this day, I always knew it would come. Now, it's time for you to die."

"For me to die?" Lucy mocked. "I won't be the one here who dies tonight." She summoned up her vectors as sand shot into the around her in spirals. She was about to unleash them when out of nowhere Bando picked a rock up off the ground and chucked it at her as fast as a professional baseball player. She easily managed to block it though, and it shattered on impact. "What's the big idea?" She asked.

"Last time we fought I was at a huge disadvantage. I didn't know about those 'arms' of yours. I didn't know that they could destroy on touch or throw anythign around you. But know look around you." He lowered his arms. "But now take a look around. I spent all this time cleaning up this beach. Now you don't have a thing around you can use. Oh, and one more thing." He suddenly drew his gun again and fired another round. This one zipped dangerously close to Lucy and scratched her face. Leaving a trail of blood on her where it passed. "Special order 50 caliber tungsten steel bullets. Far to heavy for those 'arms' of yours to deflect. I've set up the battlefield in my favor, that's checkmate." He was about to fire again when Kouta rushed him.

* * *

Nearby, Kurama and Mariko were both snuggled up close against one another in Bando's small shack. He had built it as a temporary place of residence after beginning his search for Lucy. He had allowed Kurama to move in however after agreeing to help him. When Kurama brought Mariko back Bando was less that pleased. He wasn't exactly fond of horn girls. However, he reluctantly agreed to let Mariko stay with them for the time being. Way he had planned it after he killed Lucy and got his revenge he was leaving Kamakura and never coming. Maybe he'd sell his skills as a bodyguard or mercenary. Hell, maybe he'd even join up with the Yakuza and earn some cash that way. Didn't matter to him, so long as he got to kill people. He was just going to leave the small shelter to Kurama and his daughter, not like he cared what would happen to them. He was only letting Kurama stay with him because Kurama could help him. Now Kurama and he daughter were huddling together for warmth. "Are you ok Mariko?" He asked her. "I'm sorry we have to stay in such a place, especially in the cold."

"It's ok daddy." She reassured him. "As long as I get to be with you, i'm finally happy."

Bang.

They heard gunfire from outside the shack. The both turned their heads simultaneously at the sound. "Was that Bando?" Mariko asked.

"I would guess so, probably trying to scare off another litterer. Still, we should go make sure everything's ok." Kurama began to stand up and placed Mariko on her feet. She wrapped the small raggedy blanket around her shoulders as she was set on her feet. Her father opened the sheet metal door to the shack and stepped out barefoot onto the sand. He had began to take more to the look of a homeless man after moving in with Bando. His suit was ragged and unwashed, as well as his hair. He had begun to grow a beard around his jaw and his eyes were a little sunken. Mariko's dress was now tattered and looked filthy, and her hair looked ragged in a patch on the left side of her head. but she was happy to finally be with her father, even if it was in such conditions. He was happy to finally be her father as well, it was just as his wife Hiromi had always wished. If she only she were alive...

The two of them looked over to see Bando with his gun out, to no surprise. But they did not expect to see Lucy and Kouta once more. Mariko recognized them both instantly and the next thing she saw was Kouta making a b-line for Bando. "You wanna die too? Fine!" Bando yelled at him, taking aim as Kouta drew close surprisingly fast.

"Mr. Bando, don't get to close to him!" Mariko shouted out to him. Bando heard her words and dodged back to get some distance. His first thought was that this boy might have the same powers as Lucy. He was surprised however to see that the boy's left eye changed color to back with red around the center. Even more surprising was when four glowing red tentacle like appendages came from his back. Bando rolled to the side as the came down from above and just missed him. "Thanks for the tip." He turned his head to Mariko when he landed on his knees. "Die you freak!" He shouted as he fired at Kouta. The round hit him in the gut and he slid back a few centimeters but was otherwise unharmed. "What the hell?"

"Huh, seems your bullets have enough punch to move me back. But still, they won't do any good if they can't even penetrate me." Kouta commented, taking a step closer to Bando.

_A ghoul?_ The Unknown Man recognized the four things coming out of his back as a kagune. _That would make sense, Ghouls are notorious for hiding out among humans. Lucy must have been lying low with a group of them in order to keep a low profile._

"Hey, what the hell is this guy?!" Bando called back to Mariko for advice.

"He's a human like creature called a Ghoul. He's much stronger than most people, he even beat me in combat before." She explained.

"Oh really? Then care for a little rematch?" Bando asked with a grin.

"No."

"No?! What do you mean no?" He demanded.

"That boy may have beaten me, but he also saved my life. I owe him a great debt of gratitude."

"So you're just going to let him kill me?!"

"He won't kill you." Kurama told him. "Even if he wins, he won't." Bando grunted then looked back over to Kouta.

"Pfft, stupid ideological types. You think sparing me will do anything for you?!"

"Maybe, maybe not. Either way, i'm not a killer and i'm not going to start now."

"Then you can start being killed!" Bando aimed again. Kouta jumped out of the way of each bullet, then Lucy rushed in as well. Bando fired at her, thinking he had won. But much to his surprise she managed to deflect his bullets as well. "What the hell?!"

_Fool, it doesn't matter even if you are using a 50 caliber bullet. Lucy's vectors are stronger than any other Diclonius. Still..._ The mystery man looked over at Kouta. They both ran at Bando in order to scissor him in, but he jumped back and rolled. They both stopped and were standing next to each other, facing him again. _I wasn't expecting to run into a Ghoul. I better call for backup._ He pulled out a small handheld radio and put it up to his ear. "Hunter to Kami, come in." He called over it.

"This is Kami." Cheif Kakuzawa's voice came from the other end. "Have you captured Lucy."

"Negative, i've tracked her down to the beach at Kamakura. She's in my sights but there's a problem."

"What do you mean there's a problem?" Kakuzawa asked in an accusing tone.

"There's a ghoul here, and I have no doubt he'd interfere if I made a move."

"A ghoul? Very well, i'll send backup. ETA 3 minutes."

"Roger that." The man turned the radio off and decided to wait by watching the battle unfold. Lucy and Kouta both rushed Bando again, this time separating a bit and going in at an angle.

"Big mistake!" He shouted as he pulled out a second gun and aimed it at the ground. They both looked down to see what he was up to when suddenly they were blinded. Bando had loaded the gun's first round with a flash bullet that that blinded them both while he remained protected by his special shades. He then pulled something out of his jacket. It was a grenade. He pulled the pin and threw it over to them. Lucy managed to see it coming last second and pushed Kouta out of the way with her vectors. The grenade landed right in front of her and shot out a large cloud of gas. Lucy screamed in pain and clutched her eyes again. Bando laughed manically. "How's that flash bullet and tear gas combo feel?" He looked over to Kouta who was still clutching his eyes. "Geez, you only caught the bullet flash kid. What the hell's the matter?"

"Bando, his senses are heightened far beyond that of anyone else's." Mariko explained.

"Ah, I see. Then that flash bullet was equally as worse for you. Looks like that worked to my advantage." He aimed the gun at Lucy, the rest of the clip loaded with more tungsten rounds. "Finishing blow!" He was about to fire when he noticed something from his peripheral vision. Kouta was right beside him, he spun around and delivered a hard spin kick into Bando's ribs, sending him flying back towards the ocean. "God damn it! How?!" He yelled as he sat up.

"Didn't she just tell you my senses are heightened far beyond that of a normal human?" Kouta asked. "You only took my sight, I can still hear and smell you just fine." Bando growled as he stood back up. He had come so close to victory, only to have this kid ruin it. He aimed his gun at Lucy. "Well let's see if you can hear well enough to protect your girlfriend!"

"No!" The creepy man rushed in the way and wrapped his arms around Lucy while she was kneeling on the ground.

"Who?" Kouta asked.

"You again?!" Bando yelled. "What the hell do you think you're doing you fucking pedo?"

"You can't kill this girl, if you do the new world can't be created. Lucy, I will be your eyes." He failed at that job however, as Lucy ripped his head off. She then chucked it at Bando, hitting him in the head and causing him to fall down again.

"Why you little!" He tried to stand but only managed to get to a knee. Kouta was already back upon him with his kagune coming straight for Bando. Kouta did another spin and used the momentum to hit Bando with his kagune very hard. Bando was sent flying back and tumbled until he hit the concrete wall on the other side of the beach. He was upside down and out cold a few feet away from Kurama and Mariko. Kouta finally managed to slowly open his eyes and saw the defeated Bando up against a wall. Kurama and Mariko were staring at Bando as he lay there. They then looked over to Kouta, who simply nodded to them. He walked over to where Lucy was. There was a headless corpse beside her and she was starting to open her eyes as well. Kouta knelt down beside her.

"Lucy, are you ok?" He asked.

"Yeah, my eyes were already mostly closed so I didn't get a lot of gas in them." She responded, wiping her eyes with her sleeve. Kouta took her hand and helped her stand on her feet.

"I'm glad." He smiled at her. Then he looked down at the body next to her.

"I'm sorry." She told him, causing him to give her a surprised look. "I didn't mean to kill him, it was just kind of reactive after I was blinded like that."

"Don't worry about it." He told her. "Whoever that guy is, he reeks. He's definitely where that smell was coming from."

"Really?" She looked down at him. "I wonder who is he? And what did he mean by 'the new world'?" Before Kouta could responded there was a barrage of grenades that landed around them. Each one exploded into tear gas, causing the two to fall back on their knees and cough. This wasn't the work of Bando though. Kurama grabbed Mariko and ran back inside the shack before they were spotted. Several spot lights shone on the beach from the sea. Three boats approached from the sea and a battalion of soldiers disembarked and headed for the two. Kouta could hear them. They rushed over to Lucy and held her down. She found herself unable to send out her vectors as she was in pain from both the gas as well as the men holding her down. She felt one of them stick a needle into her neck, a feeling she had long since forgotten. They then retracted it after they injected her with something and she quickly found everything going black as as she was drugged under. Kouta could hear the men doing something to her and stood up, his eyes still closed.

"There's the other one!" He heard one of them shout. He heard a man run at him, and Kouta knocked him aside with his rinkaku. The other soldiers just watched as he used his kagune to clear the rest of the gas.

"That's him." Another said. "That's the ghoul!" Kouta could them, all of them, rushing him at once. He used his kagune to knock some more of them down but some managed to avoid it. About four soldiers all took him down at once. They pinned him down and started to beat him. He could feel their fists, feet, and the butts of their MP5 sub-machine guns all hit against his head. More soldier jumped in as well and tried to beat him into submission. He opened his eyes only to see Lucy being dragged away by two soldiers. Lucy, was the last things going thought his mind before he was finally knocked unconscious by the large amount of soldiers. After they felt him stop moving, two other soldiers bound and dragged an unconscious Kouta onto the same boat as Lucy. Then just as quickly as they arrived, the soldiers packed back onto the boats and left. The engines of the boats roared as they turned tail and left the scene.

* * *

Nana started to come too back at Maple House. She slowly opened her eyes and her burred vision began to clear. She could see one of the other residents of the Maple Inn was inn the room with her, but she could not make out who. "I think she's starting to wake up." Nana could hear Yuka's voice calling out. Her vision began to focus and she could see Yuka was kneeling over her with a concerned look. Nana heard footsteps as Mayu came running over to her side.

"Nana, are you ok?" She asked with concern.

"I think so." Nana said weakly. "What happened?"

"After you blacked out, I managed to get away and call Bando for help. He saved me just in time and beat up that man."

"That's good, i'm glad he came to save you." Nana responded, still sounding weak.

"Yeah... but then the others got home just as he was leaving." Nana tried to sit up after hearing that but winced in pain. Yuka helped her lay back down.

"Hey, take it easy. You were really hurt you know."

"Wha-what happened then?" Nana asked.

"Bando left with Lucy and Kouta. I think they must have gotten into a fight." Mayu explained.

"Probably." Yuka sighed. "Those idiots. I wonder where they went off to?"

"The beach." Nana managed to get out. "He must have taken them down to the beach."

"The beach?" Yuka was confused.

"Ah, that's right. He was preparing that spot to fight Lucy."

"Then we need to go there, and find them." Nana tried to get up again but Yuka prevented any further attempts.

"You're not going anywhere. You need to stay here and rest. Mayu and I will look for them. You just stay here and get better ok?" Nana was giving Yuka a rather serious look. As if she wanted to protest but knew Yuka was right. She nodded and Yuka got up and her and Mayu left Maple Inn to go search for Kouta and Lucy.

* * *

"I think he's starting to wake up." Bando heard the sound of Mariko's voice in the pitch black. He began to open his eyes to look up at the night sky. Both Mariko and Kurama were standing around him. They had gotten him onto his back from his upside down position. He then sat up and put his hand to his head. "Ah, my head. Those bastards."

"Welcome back." Kurama greeted him.

"What happened?" Bando asked.

"They pulled off a joint attack and knocked you out."

"Damn it, then they got away." Bando gritted his teeth until he heard a familiar voice call out his name.

"Bando!" Mayu called out. He looked to see her and that other girl he saw before running over to him. "Bando, are you alright?" She asked.

"The hell are you doing here?" He asked her in a harsh tone.

"I... I wanted to see if you were ok, and..." She began to tear up. "I wanted to apologize, for lying to you. I'm sorry Bando, I just didn't want anyone to get hurt. Please forgive me." Bando was surprised to see her like this. She actually cared about hi, he couldn't understand why but she sure as hell did. He looked away from her before answering.

"Sure, whatever I guess." He forgave her in his own way. She smiled at him in response, thankful he forgave her. "Doesn't matter anyway, they got away."

"What?" Yuka asked. "Where did they go?"

"Dunno, I was out."

"While you were out, soldiers from the institute came and ambushed the two of them. They took them both." Kurama told Bando, as well as the other two girls.

"Institute, what institute?"

"The Diclonius Research Institute, it's on an island not too far from here. It's a dark, horrendous place where the Diclonius are locked up and 'experimented on'." He gave heavy implication on the experimentation part. Yuka felt a knot in her stomach after hearing that. Her cousin had been taken away to some place awful, and it terrified her.

"We have to go help him!"

"I'm afraid there's nothing we can do." Kurama put it bluntly. "The island is heavily guarded, it's likely they would blow us up before we even saw it coming." Yuka began to tear up after she head that. She held her head down in defeat.

"Then tell me... am I ever going to see my cousin again?" She managed to ask without bursting out sobbing. Kurama walked over to her and placed his hands on her shoulders, in order to give her some sense of comfort before he dropped it on her.

"I'm sorry, but where they're taking your cousin... it's better for his sake to hope that they kill him."


	8. The Inner Circle of Hell

Lucy began to awake and slowly opened her eyes. She felt icy cold steel against he her bare back and against her wrists. She opened her eyes to see she was in a room made completely out of metal with a large door in front of her. There was also a man standing there looking at her, and older man that she came to recognize. "Hello Lucy, I see you're finally awake." Chief Kakuzawa greeted her with a voice as cold as the steel around them. "Welcome home." She panicked when she saw him, she recognized him as the man who was in charge of the whole Diclonius Research Project. That could only mean one thing, she was back in hell.

"UWAAAA!" She screamed and thrashed about in her shackles that held her against the steel wall by her wrists and ankles. She was back in the last place on earth she wanted to be, the place where she was tortured and experimented on for years. That locked her up like an animal and left her in darkness and despair. The Chief just stood back and watched her struggle fruitlessly.

"There's no need for that, you're back where you belong. Right in my clutches." He told her with a stoic voice. Lucy glared at him, rage filled her body as she was face to face with the man truly responsible for her years of torment. She then felt cold and took notice of something. She was completely naked, and exposed to him. She gave another hateful look to the old bastard that put her up there and she sent her vectors at him. The stopped just short of where he was standing though, and she noticed something by his feet. There was a line engraved in the ground that read "2 meters" right below it. He was out of her range and there was nothing she could do about it. "Come now Lucy, I am not your enemy."

"You chain my up against a wall without my clothes and then tell me you're not my enemy. Don't make me laugh." She responded with a hateful tone.

"Not at all, you see... I too want to help the next step in evolution come along."

"The hell are you talking about?" She questioned him.

"10 thousand years ago, man replaced the Neanderthal as the dominant species on earth, and in a few short years Diclonius will replace man as the dominant species."

"What makes you so sure of that?"

"You know why, you are the queen of the Diclonius race. The matriarch of the new world. Together you and I will become the Adam and Eve of the new world."

"What?" She scrounger her face as she listened to the ramblings of this mad old man.

"You will bear my children, and we will create a new world. A world where the Diclonius will wipe out man and rule the earth."

"You're sick." Lucy told him.

"Am I? Or am I just facing reality? The Diclonius race will wipe out mankind, with or without you. But with you our kind has a chance for a future."

"Our kind?"

"That's right." He pulled off his wig to reveal two horns atop his head. "I am a Diclonius too, and with you I will become the father of the new race."

"Really? Well why don't you come over here and try it?" She mused.

"Very funny, even I am not dumb enough to try such a thing on you. I will of course need your consent in all of this."

"No fucking way." She hissed back at him.

"I see." He stared her down. "I have my ways, I will be forceful if I have to."

"Yeah, you try that and see what happens." She retorted.

"I see you need some time to adjust, i'll leave you be." He turned away from her and began to leave. "But one way or another, you will fulfill your part in this and bear my children." With that the closed the door to her new cell and left her in the dark. He was about to turn to his office and leave when he noticed one of his top scientists was standing by him. He was a short and pudgy older man with a balding scalp and gray hair coming town in tangles around his neck. He was also wearing a think pair of glasses and was missing a few teeth. "What is it Dr. Shitaishi?" Kakuzawa asked as he began to walk back to his office.

"Sir, it's about that boy that was brought in, the ghoul." The doctor replied with a raspy voice.

"What about him?" The Chief asked, not sounding like he cared at all.

"I thought you might find this interesting, he's not a normal ghoul. He's only half-ghoul." Chief Kakuzawa stopping his tracks after he heard that, turning head to face the short old doctor.

"What do you mean half-ghoul?"

"It appears he had major surgery over a year ago, the donor he received from was a ghoul. Now he is partially a ghoul too, and only his left eye changes state." Kakuzawa was silent after hearing about this discovery. "With your permission, I would like to run some experiments on him." A brief pause.

"Do with him what you will." Kakuzawa granted him as he continued back to his office. Dr. Shitaishi grinned from ear to ear.

"Excellent."

* * *

Kouta awoke with a sudden jerk, still remembering being knocked unconscious by a large swarm of soldiers after Lucy was being dragged away. He frantically looked around and found himself with his hands chained above his head and his ankles locked against the floor. He was standing in the middle of a white room with a mirror and doorway on the end he was facing. He was also completely naked, with his manhood just hanging out there. Kouta was embarrassed when two guards in the room looked his way. "Woah, watch out he's up!" One guard panicked and stepped back as he warned the other. The second one was sitting against a wall but quickly jumped to his feet and picked something off the ground. It was a hose and he aimed it at Kouta.

"Hey, what's the big idea here?" Kouta demanded. He was responded to by getting a burst of ice cold water sprayed on him. The sharp coldness stung against his skin and he winced from it. IT was only a short burst but it left him dripping wet and his body starting to feel numb from the cold.

"Shut up you freak!" The guard that sprayed him ordered. Kouta decided to do as he was told rather than get hosed again. The door to the room opened and two men came in the room. One was wearing a cyan blue nurse gown and cap with white surgical mask, and was pushing a metal cart into the room loaded with all types of tools and surgical equipment on it. The other was a short, stubby old man with a doctor's gown on and his hair line receding. The nurse wheeled the cart over until it was a few feet in front of Kouta.

"Thank you gentleman, you have done your job. Now please leave me and the subject here." The Doctor told the others in the room.

"Sir, are you sure?" The guard with the hose asked to confirm.

"I'm positive, don't worry I have things under control." The Doctor informed him, pushing up on his glasses. The guard slowly set the hose down and he and the other two left the room, leaving only Kouta in there with the strange doctor. "Allow me to introduce myself, I am Dr. Shitaishi, and I will be looking over you during your stay here."

"What's going on, where am I?" Kouta asked, starting to sound fearful.

"You are on a special government funded island, the Diclonius Research Institute." Dr. Shitaishi informed him with a grin.

"What? But i'm not a Diclonius."

"No, but you are a Ghoul." Kouta's jaw dropped when he heard that.

"You know i'm a ghoul?"

"Correct." The doctor informed the young boy. "Our agent saw you battling on the beach and recognized your power as a kagune. Normally we would have turned you over to the CCG, but they have no idea you are here."

"Then... what are you gonna do with me?" Kouta stammered. The doctor gave him a delightfully evil smile, one that could be expected from a deranged doctor such as himself.

"You know, i've never actually seen a ghoul until today." He told Kouta. "So, there's plenty of experiments i'd like to run." Kouta didn't like the sound of that, this man in front of him was giving him a really bad feeling. The Doctor reached into his coat and pulled something out. It was a small Makarov pistol. "You see this? This is loaded with Q bullets, special order from a friend of mine over at the CCG's lab division." He placed the small pistol on the metal cart. "So if you misbehave, i'll make sure you suffer for it. Behave too poorly, and your friend will suffer for it." Kouta suddenly remember Lucy being dragged away, he almost forgot from all this sudden fear. Which meant they must have had her somewhere on this island too. Kouta decided it was best to stay quiet and not endanger himself or Lucy. Dr. Shitaishi picked a syringe off the table and flicked the needle. It was loaded with a liquid inside that looked oddly similar to Kouta's kagune.

"Wh-what is that?" He asked.

"This? It's Rc cell suppressant. It'll keep your Rc cells down and make you more like a normal human. However, a normal hypodermic needle won't penetrate a ghoul's resilient skin. But, there is one spot it will work." He pointed to his own eye. "Right in the membrane of the eye." He grabbed hold of Kouta's face and pulled his eyelids apart on his left side. His kakugan came out in response. "Open wide."

"No, no, no. Don't!" His pleas came in one ear and went out the other, the Doctor ignored him and plunged the needle right into Kouta's ghoul eye.

"YAAAAAA!" He shouted out in pain as the needle poked him in the bottom of the eye and he felt fluid being pushed into his head. It was over in a few seconds, but to each of them it felt like an eternity. Kouta was in a great deal of pain, and the Doctor enjoyed watching this. Kouta's kakugan suddenly disappeared and turned back into its normal state.

"I see it worked." The mad doctor commented, placing the syringe back on the cart. "But there's only one way to be sure." He pulled a large pair of shears off the table and got on one knee.

"What are you doing?" Kouta asked in suspense. The doctor placed the two blades on each side of Kouta's big toe on his right foot. "No, stop!" It was no use again, the doctor cut off Kouta's big toe, causing him to once again scream out in pain.

"Good, now let's see how it looks under the hood." He reached up and picked a scalpel off the table. He made an incision into Kouta's shin and caused him to scream even more. The doctor made a flap of skin and pulled it back, revealing muscle beneath. "Hmm, looks just like a normal person. But let's see." He cut off another one of Kouta's toes, again more pain. The muscles now exposes jerked around as Kouta shook about from the great amount of pain he was in.

"You're sadistic!" Kouta shouted, now starting to cry.

"No my dear boy, this would be sadistic." He then proceeded to cut of the rest of Kouta's toes on his right foot, one after the other. Each snip sent another spark of fresh pain up Kouta's body and he yelled out even more. "See, what was the point of that? I didn't learn anything by doing that. It was pointless."

"Then why did you do it?" Kouta cried.

"To prove a point." Dr. Shitaishi responded. He then closed up the flap of skin he made and stood back up. Kouta felt like his right leg was on fire, the hot pain shot up through his leg and he was starting to shake. He just watched helplessly as his right, now toeless foot bled all over the floor. "That Rc suppressant will last about an hour, we'll have to give you one every hour on the hour. He placed his equipment back on the cart. "That was good for a first day, I think we both learned a lot from that." He turned and began to head back for the door. "I'll be back tomorrow, we're going to get quite well acquainted you and I." He said before he opened the door and left Kouta in the room to bleed alone.

* * *

About two weeks had passed since Kouta and Lucy were brought to the island of the Diclonius Research Institute. They had not seen each other since then. Every day they wondered how the other was doing. Lucy was worried what kind of things they might be doing to Kouta, blissfully unaware that the Chief had left him to the care of the most sadistic and twisted of the scientists on the island. Kouta worried that if they were doing such terrible things to him, what kinds of things they were doing to Lucy. She had remained untouched since her return. She remained restricted against that wall in the nude ever since she arrived. Every day they sent in a robot to give her a tray of food. It was disgusting slop, but she ate it to keep her alive.

Kouta on the other hand, was thrown a slab of meat every day after Dr. Shitaishi preformed his experiments. It didn't allow him to bring his kagune out, as the Rc suppressant kept that down, but he was able to regenerate and heal his wounds. That did not make the experiments any less painful or stressful. Lucy was lucky to not know what he was going though, she had her own experiences with that mad doctor when she was first brought to the island. She was wondering how he was, wishing to see him again when the door to her cell opened. Chief Kakuzawa was standing there in the doorway and walked over to the 2 meter line. "Hello Lucy, how are we feeling today? Decided to change your mind?"

"Fuck no." She spat back.

"I see." He frowned. "You do realize it's pointless to resist? You're trapped here and it's better to just accept your fate."

"How about you go buy some Cialis and go fuck yourself instead."

"Such a firebrand." He smiled delightfully. "I hope your children inherit that from you." She scowled at him, wishing that he could come just a step closer. Even if she only ripped his nose off it'd be enough. Instead she just shot him an evil look. It didn't affect however as he continued to smile at her with that mad man's look.

"You'll come around eventually, one way or another." He left the room, leaving her in complete darkness again.

* * *

"785.." Kouta counted, sounding out of breath. He was still chained up in that room, and the roots of his hair were starting to turn white. His head was starting to hang from exhaustion, and there were two wires clamped onto his arms. "780..." He continued. Dr. Shitaishi was watching from the other side of the one way glass, as a couple other scientists stood by and watched. Another one stepped into the room, Dr. Nousou another one of the top scientists as the facility. "Ah, Nousou my friend. Come, you're just in time." Shitashi greeted his fellow scientist when he entered the room.

"Hello Shitashi, sorry I haven't been able to make it recently. I've been buried in work." Nousou greeted him as he walked over next to the doctor. They both were now watching Kouta.

"775..."

"So that's him huh? The ghoul." Nousou asked.

"He is indeed, he's been my personal test subject for the past two weeks now. " Dr. Shitaishi told Nousou.

"770..."

"What's he doing?"

"Counting." Shitaishi told him. "I ordered him to count down from 100 in units of 5, while also randomly giving him shocks. I'm doing this to test his mental and physical durability. I have to say, ghouls are pretty resilient."

"Seven hundred sixty... sixty three." Shitaishi pointed to one of the other men in the room. He turned a knob and delivered a high voltage to Kouta. "GRAAHHHHH!" He shouted out in pain as the high voltage shot through his body. He twitched and fidgeted as the electricity could be heard flowing through him. After a few seconds the knob was reset and the pain stopped. Dr. Shitaishi leaned over to a microphone.

"That was incorrect Kouta, try again."

"675..." Kouta received another shock for his incorrect answer.

"Seven hundred... six... five... eight."

"Ah, no good. Stop the experiment, he can't continue on any farther." The doctor noted. "Still, 770, that's a pretty good stopping point. Most people would have caved in long ago."

"So, what exactly do you plan to do with him?" Nousou asked, crossing his arms and smirking at Kouta through the glass.

"Simple, you see Nousou the mind is meta-physical." He grabbed a pencil off a desk nearby. "While we can not physically interact with it, it can still..." He snapped the pencil in two. "Break."

* * *

Three days after that experiment, the doctor stepped back into the room with Kouta. Kouta didn't responded, he simply stared down at the ground as he tormentor entered the room. The doctor was now wearing a white surgical mask over his face today and white hospital cap. "I have a special test for you today."

"What are you going to do?" Kouta asked almost without emotion. Kouta looked up and his face filled with fear when the doctor picked up a large hunting knife and walked over to Kouta with it. "Wh-what are you gonna do with that?" Kouta was filled with fear, just as he had been every day for the past two weeks.

"We're going to stress test that regenerative ability of yours." He told Kouta as he walked around behind him. "I heard the reports that you reattached a severed arm, that's impressive. But let's see just how good that regeneration really is." Before Kouta could say anything back the doctor slashed at his back down his spine, causing Kouta to scream in pain. Shitaishi began to flay the skin on his back, cutting it off from his muscles. "STOP IT!" Kouta cried out in pain, desperate to make the pain stop. The doctor didn't listen, instead continuing to skin Kouta like he was prey. "PLEASE NO MORE! STOP THIS!" Shitaishi instead finally removed the skin from Kouta's back, leaving muscle and bone exposed as blood splattered everywhere. Kouta was in immense pain at this moment, this was the worst he had experienced so far. It wasn't over either. The doctor went around in front of Kouta and repeated the same process. Slashing first down the middle and then removing the skin. "STOP IT, STOP IT, STOP IT, STOP IT, STOP IT, STOP IT!" Kouta cried out in agony as his skin was filleted off his chest now. After it was all over Kouta had no skin on his torso area below the cuffs. He stood there, still shaking in agony and pain. The doctor wiped the blood of the blade of the hunting knife.

"Well now, we'll get you some fresh meat and see how that heals up." The doctor said. "I think we have a freshly killed Diclonius this time too." Kouta's head snapped up to the doctor after hearing that, and he had a look of shock on his face. "What, did you think we were actually feeding you human flesh? No, we thought the meat from the dead Diclonii would suffice. Low and behold it did." The doctor gave a big evil smile.

"You..." Kouta spoke softly. "You're out of your god damn mind!" Kouta yelled harshly at Dr. Shitaishi. The doctor gave him a dangerous look, and Kouta started to look like he regretted saying that.

"You know, I don't like being insulted Kouta." He placed the knife down on the cart. "Come to think of it, most people who come into contact with the Diclonius outside the lab are sterilized in order to protect the human race." He then pulled out a large pair of bolt cutters from the bottom shelf of the cart.

"No, i'm sorry, please..." Kouta frightfully pleaded as the doctor opened up the handles. He raised them above his head and smiled evilly at what he was about to do. "No please, don't!" The doctor lowered the bolt cutters and placed the blades right around Kouta's genitals. With one swift motion he castrated the boy, and Kouta was left in the worst pain he had ever felt. "UWAAAAAAAAAAA!"

* * *

"Just how long are you planning on keeping this up?" Chief Kakuzawa questioned the queen Diclonius. It had been about a month since she had been brought there, her hair was now starting to grow longer and reached just below her shoulders. She still would not agree to Kakuzawa's sick plan, and day after day, week after week told him off. Yet every day she still worried about Kouta, she began to wonder if he was even alive anymore. But she chose to remain silent in case the Chief might use Kouta against her.

"Dunno, how long is forever?" She retorted with a hateful look. Kakuzawa gave a disappointed sigh.

"I was hoping to avoid using more forceful measure, but you've given me no choice." He raised his hand and a security guard rolled in a small tv on a cart. Kakuzawa flipped it on and the image of a boy appeared on screen. It only showed his torso and he was without a shirt. His hair was pure white and his head hung down with a half-asleep look on his face. "I assume you know this boy?"

"Never seen him before in my life." Lucy told him, nor recognizing the male that was shown to her. Kakuzawa grinned.

"Perhaps you don't recognize him, but this is the boy we brought in with you. The ghoul child." Lucy's eyes shot open in surprise. She the recognized what little of the boy's face she could see. The person on the screen before her, was none other than Kouta.

"You bastard!" She cursed him, right now she wanted more than ever to tear him apart piece by piece. "If you hurt him i'm swear i'll..."

"It's far too late for that." The Chief told her, making her glare at him with a fierce rage. "You see, I left him in the personal care of Dr. Shitaishi." The name sent a chill up Lucy's spine. She knew after years of being at the facility just how cruel that man was. "But you have the power to end his suffering. If you agree to take your part in the Lebensborn project, then i'll let him go. Right back to the shore, and we'll never both him again." Lucy was now conflicted. She could agree to end Kouta's suffering, but she'd have to give up herself to this mad man. But if she refused, he would continue to suffer. She held her head down and began to cry. Why did bad things happen to Kouta whenever she was around him? First she went insane and killed his family, now he was being tortured for being around her. "Well, what will it be?" Lucy was silent for a moment, before answering softly.

"I'll do it."


	9. Dying of the light

Kouta was in one of the upper rooms of Anteiku, he was sitting on a couch with a book open on the desk. He was hunched over reading it and writing something down in a notebook. It was for an entry assignment he was given by his soon to be school in Kamakura. He was to give a written report to see where they would place him for language classes. He was in the middle of jotting down some notes then the door to the room swung open and Kouta snapped his head up to see who had arrived. Touka came into the room, dressed in normal clothes as she was not scheduled for the day. She had her same bored expression on her face as she walked in. "Ah, hello Touka. What brings you here?" Kouta greeted her.

"Heard from Nishiki that you were coming over today to work on some project. I was in the mood to do some sparring." She told him.

"Sure! I've been getting stronger every day ever since I started your regiment." He flexed his right bicep to try and show off.

"Good, you're going to need to be." She walked over and sat down next to him as he closed up his notebook. "May I ask what are you doing anyway?"

"Oh, a report to see where i'd place in writing classes when school starts up. I have to chose a poem and write a report of the meaning of it."

"Ah, I see. did you find one to do your report on?"

"Yeah, it's a pretty popular one. You might have heard of it..."

* * *

Kouta awoke from his dream when he heard the door to the room behind the glass open. It had been quiet for the past few hours, Kouta wasn't sure if it was day or night. He no longer had a sense of time. Every moment was hell for him, especially when he was being tortured by that mad doctor. The pain would last for a long time after, and the psychological effects would never go away. He hoped Lucy wasn't being put through what he was going though. Every day he worried about her being locked up in this place, and what kinds of things she had endured. He was completely unaware that she had not been harmed at all. In the observatory room to Kouta's cell, Dr. Shitaishi and Dr. Nousou entered the room. It was dark in the room as it was powered down, but there was still light in Kouta's cell. He had regenerated from his wounds from every single 'experiment' even his manhood had grown back. But his mind had not recovered, he was in a dark place and his dream where he remembered his times with everyone back at Anteiku was his only escape. He wished he could go back and see them again, along with everyone at Maple Inn. Instead he was locked up in this hell hole.

"So, how's your lab rat fairing?" Nousou asked as he noticed Kouta's now snow white and messy hair.

"Ah, I seem to have broken him already. He hasn't said a word for 5 days, he hardly even reacts to anything anymore. He just stands there like that." Shitaishi told the other doctor. "Let's see if he's feeling any different today." He went over to the microphone and turned it on. "Kouta my boy, could you please say something?" Kouta didn't even budge, he just stared at the ground like he was brain dead. "Hmm, no good." The doctor turned off the microphone and turned to leave.

"So what will you do with him now?" Nousou asked.

"Don't know, maybe i'll cut him apart and see what's inside."

"Do not go gentle into that good night." Nousou looked over and Shitaishi turned back around, both of them surprised to hear Kouta speak.  
"Old age should burn and rave at close of day;  
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Though wise men at their end know dark is right,  
Because their words had forked no lightning they  
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright  
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,  
Rage, rage against the dying of the light."

Dr. Shitaishi gave one his big evil grins and began to laugh manically. "Oh-ho-ho, this is great. I've put him through a month of excruciating torture, and not only can he form complete sentences but he can recite poetry. This is wonderful! I have such big plans for this boy."

"I believe that is from Dylan Thomas if I am not mistaken." Nousou noted.

"Indeed, a rather exceptional work. Oh this boy gives me hope, we will achieve such wonderful things together." Shitaishi's victory was cut short when one of the security guards entered the room.

"Sorry doc, the boy is to be cut loose and sent back to Kamakura, Chief's orders."

"Awww, what a shame." A look of disappointment swept of the doctor's face. "And here I was with such high hopes for the future." He sighed. "Perhaps I will just have to find another Diclonius to be my personal lab assistant." The two doctors watched the guard as he went over to the door to enter where Kouta was being held.

"He's received his injections right?" The guard asked before entering.

"Yes, he just received one half an hour ago. He won't be able to harm you." Shitaishi confirmed and the guard nodded back in response. He opened the door to Kouta's cell and closed it behind him while he went to go retrieve the prisoner. "Ah, I wonder if Lucy would be able to hold out as long as he did."

"Don't get your hopes up about that. The Chief has very special plans for her." Nousou informed his colleague.

"Oh, is that so? What does he have in mind exactly?"

"I probably can't tell you, but you'll find out soon enough." Nousou told him with a childish smile.

"I normally don't like surprises, but this intrigues me. Guess i'll just have to be patient."

Nousou turned to walk out of the room. "Well I have to get back to my own work, good to see you again Dr. Shitaishi. We really should get together more often."

"Indeed we should Dr. Nousou, perhaps we could even work together sometime."

"Perhaps, one of these days you'll have to see my little pet project. It'll really-" He was suddenly cut off by shattering glass. Something flew through the other end of the one way mirror separating the observatory from the cell. It landed on the ground near Shitaishi and Nousou who both looked down to see what it was. They were both mortified to see the severed upper half of the guard that had just went into Kouta's cell. They both turned back to see a truly gruesome sight. Kouta had broken free of his bondage, and had the legs of the guard in his hands. The now white haired boy had his mouth on the other part of one of the thighs and ripped out a large chunk of meat. He swallowed it whole took, taking it down in one gulp, before dropping the lower half of the guard.

"You'll have to forgive me, I normally don't feed in front of other but... i'm so damn hungry." He looked up at the two scientists, both were shocked and horrified to see his left eye was now in its kakugan state. "That Diclonius meat you fed me was too damn chewy."

"What? but how?" Shitaishi asked in horror.

"Seems as if after a whole month of constant injections to your little drug that I developed some resistance to it." Kouta informed the two of them. He then began to step closer to them.

"No, this can't be happening." Nousou said in fright. He ran over to the door, as right next to it in the observatory was a panic button. Before he could reach it, Kouta rushed at him using his ghoulish speed to zip across the room. Shitaishi was afraid for a moment that Kouta was going to kill him then and there, but instead saw Kouta zip past as a blur and reached Nousou before he could push the button. Kouta grabbed the arm that was outstretched, reaching for the panic button. He took hold if before that could happen, and now had a hold of Nousou.

"Now now, i'll have none of that." He lifted his leg up and put his foot on Nousou's mid-section. He simultaneously pushed with his foot and pulled Nousou's arm. He tore Nousou's arm right off his body, blood splattered all around as his arm was forcibly severed. Nousou let out a scream.

"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH-Hurk!" He stopped screaming when he felt another pain. Kouta pushed his right arm all the way through Nousou's mid section, right below the ribcage. His had came out the other end, drenched in blood. Nousou spat some blood out on the floor and had one last look at Kouta. The boy was longer the fearful test subject they had for the past month, instead he had a grim look of hatred on his face. He had taken to his ghoul side, he had become a monster. Then everything went black and Nousou perished. Kouta threw the body to the ground when it was still on his hand and retracted his arm. His whole forearm was covered in blood now, and he looked over to his next victim, the man that had tormented him for the past month.

The doctor drew out his Makarov pistol and aimed it at Kouta. Kouta's kagune was faster however. It shot out of his body and lightning fast speeds and one wrapped around Dr. Shitaishi's wrist that was holding the gun. He tried to fire, but Kouta's powerful kagune skewed his aim, making him miss. Kouta lifted the doctor into the air, making him slam into the ceiling, then slamming him into the ground. The gun flew out of his hand when he hit the ceiling. He tried to get himself up from the ground but felt the rinkaku wrap around his neck. He was lifted into the air then pushed against the wall and held there. Kouta walked over to the immobile doctor.

"Now then doctor, let's do some math." He placed his right thumb against one of the doctor's ribs. "What's 1000 minus 7?" When the doctor didn't answer quick enough, Kouta pushed with his thumb. There was an audible snap as he broke one of the doctor's ribs. He yelled out in pain. "I'll ask again, what's 1000 minus 7?" He broke another rib, another scream of pain.

"9... 993." The doctor choked out through the pain.

"Correct." Kouta broke a third rib anyway.

"GAH! Just... just what do you think is going to happen? You're never going to get off this island."

"After I repay you i'm going to find Lucy, and slaughter everyone here. Then we're both going to get out of here and go back home." Kouta told the doctor.

"Ha, don't make me laugh." He managed to smile even now. "They'll capture you and her, then i'll make you both my test subjects. She too already knows what kind of experiments I preform."

"What the hell do you mean by that?" Kouta asked with a darker tone, tightening his grip around Shitaishi's throat.

"Oh, didn't I ever tell you about that?" He smiled evilly. "About the time I sodomized her with a sonar probe?" That was the worst mistake the doctor could have made. Kouta's expression shifted to one of absolute anger. He dug his fingers right into the doctor's side where he broke the ribs, this time he ripped out that entire half of the man's ribs. The doctor coughed up blood as even more of it ran out from his wound. He was thrown to the ground by Kouta's rinkaku, and was unable to move due to the pain.

"Normally I would have eaten someone alive for doing something like that to my friend. But I think it'd be unhealthy to eat someone as sick as you. So instead..." His four kagune appendages extended outwards and pointed in towards the doctor in a threatening manner. "I think i'll just tear you apart piece by piece." He then repaid everything to the doctor as he tore him apart in the most painful of ways, making sure he was alive until the very last moment.

* * *

"Why does the coffee here always taste like shit?" One guard asked the other while the two of them walked down the halls. The two of them were doing their usual rounds of patrol and were now headed back the the security guard quarters.

"I dunno, I don't drink coffee." The second guard responded to his partner.

"I'm just saying, if we're tasked with keeping humanity safe from these monsters the least they could do is give us some decent coffee." He opened the door to the guard quarters and the two of them stepped inside. It was a two part room, one part was the lounge area where one entered after stepping through the door. This where the two men were now, but they head a noise in the other part. That was the sleeping quarters where the guards slept and stored their belongings. No one else was supposed to be there at that time to the two of them went to investigate. They found a teenage boy with white hair inside their quarters. He was over by the lockers at the far end of the room, it appeared as if he was getting dressed. He had on a pair of the dark blue pants the guards wore, and put on one of their light blue undershirts. Oddly though he was still barefoot.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" The second guard asked. The boy stopped moving and just stood there for a moment. He turned his head slightly and glared over at the guards with a dark look. They took notice of his black and red left eye that was now staring at them. "The ghoul! He's out!" The second guard pulled out his Nambu revolver. Before he could fire a single shot Kouta rushed at him and grabbed his arm. Kouta pulled the wrist with the gun towards him and used his elbow against the guards to creating a breaking point. The guard's arm broke and made him scream in agony. The first guards tried to run away, but before he could leave to the other half of the room Kouta got behind him and kicked him right below the knee in the back of the leg. This made him fall flat on his face and Kouta stood over him. He unleashed his kagune and it began to strangle the other guard who's arm was broken. The first one just sat there and looked up at Kouta with fear.

"Now, don't make this any harder on yourself than it already is." Kouta ordered him. "Tell me, where is Lucy?" There was a loud snap of the neck of the other guard.

* * *

Lucy was finally free from the wall of her room after a month, only to have her wrists handcuffed, and shackles extending from them for her to be dragged out.

"Remember, stay at least two meter away from her at all time." One of the two guards in the room with her told the other holding the chain. The one that had given the orders was armed with a UMP-45 sub-machine gun. "The Chief told us he got her to agree to be passive, but don't take any chances."

"Right. How'd he get her to that anyway?" The other one asked.

"Not a clue, but he guaranteed she wouldn't give us any trouble during this transfer. We're supposed to take her right to the elevator and someone else will take the reigns from there." That was a lie of course. He had told Lucy about how to get down to his secret grotto a kilometer underground. There she was to uphold her end of the bargain in exchange for Kouta's freedom. The idea sickened her, she was trying her best not to throw up. She was going to let that sick old pervert have his way with her. But she thought this was the only way she could help Kouta. After all the misery she caused him, she was willing to do anything to help him, even this. Still, she was frightened. She was going to put herself through hell, but for Kouta it was worth it. She was hoping to save herself for him, but that dream could no longer come true. She felt a tug and near tripped when the one guard pulled the chain.

"Let's go freak." He ordered her. She obliged wordlessly and came along with them. The armed guard began to exit her open cell when someone came by from down the hall. Lucy could tell someone was there now but couldn't tell who.

"Hey, who are-" He was suddenly cut off when an arm plunged through his chest. Lucy and the other guards just stood there in shock as they saw this, and as they saw what the person had in their hands. Whoever it was had ripped out that guard's heart and was now holding it, detached from his body. The boy then crushed it in his hands and blood splattered everywhere. The guard watched in horror at the sight, his jaw open. Lucy watched and wondered who this person was, and what was going on. The body of the guard dropped, and Lucy saw the last person she expected to see standing there. Kouta. His hair was pure white just like she had been shown, his left eye was a kakugan now and he glared at the other guard. This was a look she had never seen on him before. He had given other people fierce looks when he was defending her, but this... this was a look of a madman, one who did not care how many people he killed. She recognized it after wearing that look herself for so long.

"Monster!" The other guard held onto the chain with one hand and with the other pulled out a Beretta M9 pistol. He fired one shot at Kouta, who lunged at the guard as the bullet missed. When he got close Kouta raised his arm above his head to chop the guard's head off. Which is exactly what he did. In one fell swoop he sliced the guard's head off with a chop and it went flying across the room. The decapitated body slumped over on the ground as the gun clanked and chains rattled as they hit the floor. Lucy watched in astonishment, unsure if this boy really was Kouta anymore. He looked up at her and gave a friendly little smile.

"It's good to see you again Lucy." He walked over to her and gently took her bound hands.

"Kouta..."

"Sorry if i'm embarrassing you, just give me a second." She realized she was still naked, and Kouta could see everything. Her face turned a deep shade of red that almost matched her hair. Kouta pulled on the handcuffs binding her together and snapped them. Her hands were now free, and She used her vectors to slice them off her wrists. As soon as she was free she used her hands to cover herself up as best as possible. "Eh, just wait here a second." He smiled awkwardly and started to blush. He ran back around the corner he came and disappeared for a second. He came back with a white lab coat and handed it to her. "Here, cover yourself up." He turned his head away from her as he outstretched his arm, offering her the large coat. "Don't worry, I won't look." She was still blushing, but smiled gently.

"Thank you, and I honestly don't mind that much if it's you who sees." Now he was starting to turn red and he looked surprised as he felt her take the coat from him. He decided to take her up on her offer and peeked with his right eye. He caught a quick glimpse of her nice figure as she put the coat over herself and buttoned it up. She knew he did it but didn't care. She didn't mind if he saw her like that, and more than anything she was glad he was safe. She buttoned up the over-sized coat that did its job of covering her up. It extended down to just above her knees and she looked over to Kouta. "Better?"

"Y-yeah." He stammered, now facing back towards her. "Are you alright? Did they hurt you?" She shook her head.

"No, I was just chained up there. Thank god you came along when you did." She was caught by surprise when he suddenly pulled her into a hug.

"I'm glad you're unharmed." He told her as he held onto her.

"I... I wish I could say the same about you." She wrapped her arms around him now. After a moment, they broke off the hug.

"It's ok, i'm alright." He told her.

"Kouta, they told me who left you with. I know from experience how sadistic that man is." Kouta remembered that Shitaishi told him earlier, and quickly tried to forget about it.

"Don't worry about it, I took care of it."

"Kouta..." She spoke softly. "Did you... kill him?" He was silent for a moment, looking at her with conflicted eyes.

"Yes." He told her, taking her aback by this sudden revelation. "I'm sorry... but some things have changed. Let's just go home already."

"No..." She responded. "There's something I have to do first."

"What is it?" He asked her.

"I have to go stop Chief Kakuzawa. Let him know his Lebensborn Project failed."

"His what?" Kouta asked, tilting his head.

"He's trying to make the Diclonius replace man as the dominant species on earth. There's just one snag in his plan, the silpelits like Nana and Mariko can't reproduce."

"So then what does he do?"

"He needs the queen, the carrier of the virus, the original."

"Wait, isn't that you?"

She nodded. "He was planning on forcing me to have kids with him to create a race of Diclonius that could breed." Kouta's eyes suddenly widened. Without warning he suddenly placed his hands on her shoulders and made her jump.

"Did that bastard lay a god damn hand on you?" He demanded.

"N-no, I wouldn't let him get close to me." She told him, taken aback by his sudden reaction.

"Good." He let go of her. "Still, I can't let you go alone. Let's go face him together." She nodded and led Kouta over to the elevator to enter combat together one last time.

* * *

Chief Kakuzawa waited in his underground grotto, the place that had so many of his ancestors buried. It also contained a large pool in the center, which held his large monstrous creation. Anna, his own daughter who he modified to become a pseudo-goddess. Her cranial capacity had greatly increased, allowing her thoughts to far surpass that of any human. She was an organic super-computer. Capable of predicting any calculation, and knowing almost anything. She was risen above the water level, her massive black head with many eyes scattered all over, waiting alongside her father. The elevator beeped as it arrived to the bottom level. Kakuzawa opened his eyes and smiled like a child in a candy store. "She's here." He noted with delight.

_She's not alone._ Anna telepathically spoke. There was an explosion and the doors to the elevator shot out in two directions. Kakuzawa looked stunned to see that, then narrowed his eyes that direction in frustration. When the smoke cleared, he saw standing there the Queen Diclonius and the ghoul boy they had captured. The two of them were staring down Kakuzawa with an intense hatred. They both walked closer to him and he stood up from his seat on one of the rocks.

"So you've decided to resist me after all?" He asked Lucy.

"I'm not going to be involved in your sick plan." She told him.

"You're a fucking pervert you know that?" Kouta told him.

"And you're a monster who eats people. After Diclonius wipe out mankind you'll be next. You won't have access to your food supply anymore, and I highly doubt you can hunt a Diclonius like they were prey."

"They're too damn chewy anyway."

"What?" Lucy suddenly snapped her head to them.

"They fed me Diclonius while I was captive. Probably others that fell to their sick twisted experiments."

"Well I would have saved that assistant girl if I knew you were coming." Kakuzawa grinned sheepishly.

"What assistant girl?" Kouta asked.

"Don't you remember? Shirakawa, the girl with the glasses that saw you fight with #35 back on Enoshima." Kouta gritted his teeth and realizing who he meant. "She tried to come back and fake her report, but I knew all along she was a spy. So I called her into my office, and I blew her brains out."

"You've got some serious issues." Kouta spat at him.

"Like you're one to talk, either of you. One of you eats people and the other has killed at least 9000 people."

"Then I guess her kill count is-"

"Don't even start." Kakuzawa cut him off from making the reference. "After this is over i'm sending you back into the personal care of Dr. Shitaishi."

"I don't think that will possible anymore." Kouta smiled a little evilly at him. "You see... I ripped him into tiny pieces." He kagune came out. "Just like i'm about to do to you."

"I think not." The Chief just stood there as his daughter raised one of her monstrous arms above Kouta and Lucy. They both noticed the shadow being cast over them. Anna brought her arms down and tried to squish the two pests. Before she could however Lucy used a great deal of her power and severed the giant arm. It went flying over them an Anna let out a loud psychic screech of pain.

_Owooooooo!_ Her energy shook the whole grotto. Suddenly, Lucy coughed up blood into her hands and it dripped down onto her coat and over the floor.

"Lucy!" Kouta cried out, coming to her side. "Are you alright?"

"Not even your power is infinite." Kakuzawa spoke up. "Use too much power and the strain will melt your body. Which means, for someone Anna's size, you're no match." Lucy looked up to see Anna was getting ready to strike again with her other arm.

"Don't worry Lucy, I got this." Kouta stepped forward. Anna swung her arm and tried to swat him. He jumped up into the air and landed on her massive black arm. He ran up it and when he got close jumped atop her head. She tried to reach for him but it was too late. He sent out all four of his rinkaku scales to rapidly pierce her enhanced head over and over again. Anna could only open her many eyes in shock as again and again the long tentacle like appendages pierced her head and ripped through her giant brain. After a while Kouta then jumped down and landed back next to Lucy. Anna let out an even louder scream.

_OWOOOOOOOOOOOO!_ This time she managed to rip a giant hole in the ceiling above them. Sea water began to pour in through the gigantic hole as Anna fell over on her side. She was still alive, but barley hanging on. _Father, I have failed you._

"Don't worry Anna, you did your part. Lebensborn isn't finished just yet."

"Wake up old man." Lucy scolded him. "I am not going to have kids with you, your plan has failed, you have failed."

"A fighter until the end I see. Your mother was no different."

"What did you just say?" She took a step closer to him.

"Come now, you're the Queen of the new race, did you really think we wouldn't look into who your parents were?"

"They abandoned me!" She spat back.

"Wrong, only your father abandoned you." He corrected her. "After he saw your horns he left you in the woods for dead. Your mother however spent the rest of her life looking for you." Lucy was shocked, this whole time she had thought that both of her parents had abandoned her. But her mother had actually cared for her, looked for her to no end. She wondered if things could have been any different if her mother found her.

"Where is my mother now?"

"She's dead." Kakuzawa told her.

_Father, there is something I need to tell you._ Anna spoke up.

"Don't worry Anna, I know. I know that it is not I who will personally father in the new race." He turned back to face Lucy. "You see, your mother commit suicide after I forced her to bear me a child." Both Lucy and Kouta's faces lit up with rage. "For she was the original carrier, she is where the Diclonius virus first originated. Thus, the Lebensborn has not yet failed." Kakuzawa looked behind a large rock to his left and made a motion for someone to come out. A very young boy with brown hair and two horns on his head stepped out from behind the rock and went over to Kakuzawa. There was also a round metal plate in his forehead. "Lucy say hello to the only male Diclonius, your brother." Lucy looked down at the young boy with great surprise.

"Onee-tama?" He spoke to her with a smile.

"You sick bastard." Kouta cursed him.

"You see, I will not be the one who will have children with you, but him. Together you will create the perfect breed of Diclonius. The Adam and Eve of the new world, and I... I will be the godfather of it all." He out stretched his hands in the hair, then pulling off his wig to reveal his horns and keeping his hands raised in glee. "You see, we are the same you and I. We are both Diclonius, just as all my ancestors before me. The remnants of our ancient ancestors, destined to take the world which is rightfully ours!" He cheered out, gloating over his own pride. Kouta and Lucy both just stared at him like he was a damn fool. Giving him their grim looks.

_Father, you misunderstand._

"Do you wanna tell him or should I?" Kouta asked Lucy.

"What?" She responded, not understanding the question.

"You can sense it right? I can smell it on him."

"What? What are you two talking about over there?" Kakuzawa questioned them.

"So you can tell too huh?" Lucy shot another hateful look towards Kakuzawa. "I was planning on just ripping his head off."

"Nah, I wanna see the look on his face when he finds out." Kouta responded.

"Fine. You're not a Diclonius." Lucy told the Chief.

"What?!" He shouted back with vigorous anger.

"I can sense the presence of other Diclonius, you are not one of them. Kouta can tell too, you don't give off the same scent." Kakuzawa gritted his teeth in fury as Lucy explained this to him.

"That... that can't be true. My ancestors."

"Nothing but stories." Kouta replied, taking a step forward. "All of those stories made up. You're no god, Adam, father of a new race or anything like it." He was now clsoer to him, a step in front of Lucy. "You're a fucking psycho." Kakuzawa was mad with fury. His face tightening with rage at being told his whole family history was a lie, his plan a farce from the start. He turned and face Anna.

"Is this true."

_Yes father._

"And you knew the whole time? Just egging me on for what I did to you." He faced away from his daughter. "I am not as cruel to you as you think I might be."

_Father..._

"Silence! My son is dead, you are no longer my child." If Anna could have cried through her many eyes should would have right there.

_I understand, but still..._ She began to rise out of the water ever more. _I will not allow anyone to hurt you!_ Before she could begin another attack however her massive head was split in two, courtesy of one of Lucy's vectors. She coughed up more blood and fell on one knee.

"Hey, take it easy!" Kouta warned her. She unleashed another vector and beheaded her half-brother, killing the only male Diclonius alive. She got back on her feet.

"Now it's your turn..." She looked up to see Kakuzawa was no longer there. He vanished in all the commotion. "Damn it!" She cursed. "He got away."

"Forget about him, it doesn't matter anymore." He said placing his hand on her arm. "Just don't overexert yourself and die on me."

She smiled back at him. "Don't worry, I won't." He smiled back at her.

"I gotta ask though, why did you do that?" He looked over to the decapitated child nearby.

"I'm sorry." She apologized to they boy. "Kouta, my bloodline can't be allowed to continue. I've caused too much grief in the world as is already. I can't allow this to continue any farther. Which also means I can never have children of my own." She looked off rather distantly.

"Lucy..." Kouta placed a comforting hand on her shoulder and offered her a warm smile. "I'm sorry, about everything. You don't deserve to have to suffer like this. but for what it's worth, I think you would have made a good mom."

"R-really?" She began to blush.

"Yeah, you've been abused and pushed around your whole life. I know it hurts but... I think then you know to treat your child with love and affection, and you'd make a great parent." She smiled back at him a little.

"Thank you Kouta." They were so glad to be by each other once more. Lucy turned back to look at the now dead Anna when she noticed something. "Umm, Kouta..."

"Hmm?" He looked over when she pointed to the split head of Anna. Inside, was a child. Around the same age as Nana and Mayu it looked like. She was totally nude, and sticking part way out of the creature's split head from the inside. "What on earth?"

"Looks like he was right after all, he wasn't such a cruel father." Lucy commented. That's when Kouta realized it too. That was the real Anna, the thing they had fought was simply an exoskeleton. A casing in which the real Anna was trapped inside.

"Maybe..." Kouta responded. "Or maybe it was just intended as a failsafe." They both stared at the girl.

"What do we do about her?" Lucy asked.

Kouta sighed. "Pain in my ass."


	10. Not out of it yet

Sirens blazed throughout the Diclonius research institute. It was the signal to evacuate the facility, the large hole that ripped through the middle of the building out of nowhere caused the island to start to sink. The ground was starting to cave in around the hole and sea water was flowing in by thousands of gallons per minute, which was also helping to corrode the land. Arakawa was alone in her personal lab finishing up on her work before she fled. She was close her, her ultimate project almost complete. She waited impatiently for the sample to finish. She had to leave, but also had to wait for her project to be completed. She heard the door to her office open as someone else stepped in. They hair blonde hair tied up in a ponytail and round sunglasses on. They were wearing a black vest and black pants, along with black combat boots. "Hey, what do you think you're doing here? Can't you tell we have to evacuate?" They asked Arakawa.

"Well I could ask you the same, this is my private lab ya know." She responded. This person looked back out in the hall both ways then closed the door behind them.

"Don't tell anyone, but i'm actually here as a spy from the other research facility." They whispered.

"A spy?!"

"Shhhh!"

"Sorry." Arakawa spoke in a soft voice.

"I've been investigating into Chief Kakuzawa's motives, turn out protecting the human race isn't exactly in his quota."

"yeah, Lebensborn. He's already filled me in on all of that and took me to his under ground grotto."

"Good, then we're on the same page about that." The Agent walked over to Arakawa's work. "I also understand you're working on a vaccine?" She nodded.

"It's almost ready, just a little more-" Ding. The sample were complete. A round disc shaped tray popped out of the machine, loaded with sample of the Diclonius Virus Vaccine. "They're done!" She ran over and collected them. She placed them inside of a bright red cooler along with her research notes on them.

"Good, then let's get out of here. Follow me." The Agent ordered her.

"Hey, why do I have to listen to you?"

"Fine then, sink with the island while I get away on a private water craft." The Agent said as they began to walk away.

"Ah! Wait no, i'm coming with." Arakawa ran to catch up.

"Good." The Agent opened the door to hear the sound of gunfire. They both stepped out and looked to see what was going on. Down the hall a group of guards was firing father down towards a group of nude Diclonii with bags over their heads. Their bullets seems to do nothing to the rouge Diclonii however, and the massive swarm soon clsoed in and killed all of the guards, mangling up their corpses in gruesome way. "Shit, this way!" The Agent grabbed Arakawa by the hand and lead her down the other way, running full speed.

"Wh-what was that?" She asked as she held the cooler with the cure behind her.

"Cloned Diclonius. Each of them put through rough conditions, no doubt they're set out to kill everyone here."

"Oh man, this is bad." After a short while of running the Agent eventually slowed down and let Arakawa take a quick breather, as she was huffing he pulled out a large Colt Anaconda .44 Magnum revolver with a 4 inch barrel.

"That's not the worst of it. Lucy has escaped and is likely somewhere in this facility." Arakawa looked horrified. She had never met Lucy but had heard plenty about the things she'd done. "Not only that, but she's accompanied by another human-looking creature known as a Ghoul."

"A ghoul?" She asked both confused and afraid.

"That's right, I haven't heard about them myself until he came in but apparently they survive by eating human flesh. So if he catches you, he'll probably eat you." Arakawa was mortified. She had never heard of something so gruesome in her life. "This gun is loaded with special tungsten steel rounds, they're too heavy for the Diclonius to deflect. But apparently guns don't work on ghouls, so if we run into him, we're dead." Arakawa placed her head back against the wall.

"Why me?" She complained.

"Come on, enough sitting around. If we wait too long we'll go down with the island." Arakawa stood up and sighed, placing a hand against the wall she was just leaning on.

"Aye aye." She moped. She took a step forward when suddenly the island began to shake. Arakawa tripped and fell face first against the floor. She dropped the bright red cooler and it hit the ground. Part of the wall near her began to collapse, and she scuttled back away from it in a panic. The Agent grabbed her and pulled her back away from the collapse. She failed the grab her research however, and it fell down into the abyss. "No!" She crawled over and reached for it but it was too late. The cooler fell down and when she looked it was gone already.

* * *

Kouta and Lucy were wandering around some of the lower levels of the research facility. Kouta was carrying a nude Anna over his shoulder as they made their way up and out. "Turn right here." Lucy instructed him. He did so, using her like a GPS to navigate through the facility. She had been wheeled through enough times that she knew her way around the place. So she told Kouta which direction to go in order for them to escape the sinking island. As he made his way down the hall the island began to shake violently, more of it sunk into the abyss. Part of the hall they were in fell down and they could now view the open hole. Both of them had taken a step back when the wall next to them suddenly began to vanish and fall.

"Geez, that was close." Kouta responded in shock. He stepped closer and looked up. "Looks like I can see the surface from up here, how about we climb up instead?"

"Climb up?" She looked at him confused.

"Yeah, you should be able to climb using your vectors right? I should be able to with my rinkaku."

"You're what?"

"My kagune." He explained.

"Why did you just call them rinkaku?" She asked.

"I'll explain later, first let's get out of here." They both stood near the edge, ready to climb up to the top. Before either could unleash their special weapons however, something fell in front of them and Lucy caught it with her vectors. Kouta looked over and stared at the bright red cooler. "Hey, what's that?" He asked.

"I... I don't know." She brought it closer to herself and grabbed it with her real arms. "But I have a feeling to destroy whatever is in, like it's a threat to my very existence." She opened up the small cooler and looked inside, finding a small notebook along with a plastic disc that contained several small capsules of a blue liquid inside. Lucy pulled out the black notebook and opened it up to the page. "So that's why..."

"What is it?" Kouta asked.

"It's a cure, a vaccine for anyone infected with the Diclonius Virus, preventing any further Diclonius births." She told him, then placing the notebook carefully back in the container. "We have to take this with us, I can't allow this to continue any farther. Enough people have gotten hurt already." She picked up the container. Kouta stared at her for a moment, surprised to see her so concerned about this. But he then replied back.

"Alright, but you're carrying it since i've already got her." He told Lucy. He faced back towards the massive gaping hole and his left eye shifted into a kakugan. He sent out his kagune scales and used them to penetrate into the remaining walls. He used them to climb upwards, Lucy followed shortly behind him using her vectors to scale the destroyed wall. However, when they got about 2 floors away from the surfaces one of the walls on the last floor began to collapse. Kouta's kagune went into it and it suddenly began to fall out of place. His ghoul appendage fell out with it and he nearly fell off the wall, dearly holding on with his other three while he held tightly onto Anna. The wall then began to fall out of its place as debris flooded out and by luck managed to miss Kouta.

"Kouta, are you alright?" Lucy called up to him.

"Fine, but we can't go up this way any farther. We're only two floors below so lets just go it here." He shouted back down to her. He climbed into the second to last floor, retracting his rinkaku as he landed on his feet. Lucy was there behind him about 2 seconds later. He led the way again as he exited the small office space, now emptied as the employees had fled.

* * *

Arakawa was still being led out of the facility by the mysterious agent. The two of them were taking back halls and corridors to flee to a back exit and arrive to an already placed escape boat. On the other side of the facility, the remaining staff were fleeing or being torn apart by the horde of clone Diclonii. "It's just a little farther." The spy told Arakawa. They took another left. "Straight down here." She was told. They continued straight down that hall and came to one last intersection. "It's just a little..." The Agent stopped speaking when they found they two of them were not alone. Right as they came to the intersection, someone else did. A teenage boy with snow white hair, and when he saw them he gave them a rather menacing look. As if they were just another bother to them. Behind him, the two of them instantly recognized the Queen Diclonius. There was silence in the halls as they all met there. Arawaka noticed something in Lucy's hands. It was the bright red container she had put her vaccine and notes in.

"The cure..." She spoke as her eyes widened. The Agent looked and noticed it too. Lucy was holding the future of humanity in her hands. But the two of them were giving rather intimidating looks, as if they were expecting a fight.

"Yeah..." The Agent responded. "I'm afraid we're going to need that." The other two were informed. The Agent reached for their gun, ready to do battle. But instead, both of them were surprised to see Lucy casually walk past Kouta and extend her arm out to them, offering them the container.

"Here, take it." She told them, taking them both by surprise.

"J-just like that?" Arakawa asked. Lucy nodded.

"I know it seems odd, but I don't want this to continue any farther either. Too many people have already gotten hurt because of me, I don't want it to continue anymore either. So please, take this and just help me stop this, all of this." There was a moment of silence as both the agent and Arakawa were shocked to Lucy willingly hand over the vaccine. The agent reached over and took it from her, half-afraid that she might chop his arm off as he tried. Instead she offered no resistance and let them take back the cure.

"Here, take her too while you're at it." Kouta handed over Anna to them. The agent handed the cure to Arakawa, and took Anna to carry himself.

"Who is she?" The agent asked.

"Her name is Anna, she's the Chief's daughter." Kouta told them.

"His daughter?"

"Yeah, he had her down in his little hole in the earth, he modified her to a gigantic size to make her smart, like an organic super-computer." Kouta told them.

"Alright, we'll get her out of here." Kouta nodded. He and Lucy continued their way out, after they had passed the agent and Arakawa continued on down the hall.

"Hey, who was that kid?" Arakawa asked.

"Consider us lucky, that was the ghoul." She gasped in shock at hearing that, her face full of fright. That boy was the ghoul that could have easily ripped her apart and eaten her like she was prey. Plus he was right next to Lucy. The two most dangerous people in the facility right next to each other, and she just ran into both of them. She considered herself lucky to be alive. The agent continued to lead her down the hall to an escape hatch. There was a ladder leading straight up and out to the hatch to the outside world. The agent stepped out first, taking a peek around to make sure there was no one in sight. When it was all clear, the agent opened the hatch all the way and stepped out. Arakawa came out right behind and the two of them made their way to the nearest part of the island's edge. There was a small inflatable boat right against the coast with a motor on the back of it. This would held them get back to the shore quickly and escape with the cure in tact. The agent jumped down onto it first, then helping Arakawa as she came down with the cure. The Agent started up the boat and the two of them made their escape from the island.

* * *

Back at Kamakura on the peaceful nighttime beach, a small wooden boat reached shore. A young male jumped out onto shore and outstretched his arms. "Man, it is so good to be home again." He exclaimed as his bare feet touched the sand. Kouta was finally back home after the worst month of his entire life. Lucy stepped out soon after, still dressed in nothing but a white lab coat. She went over to his side and admired the sight of the town she felt like she had not seen in a long time. It was quiet at night, no noise of people and the stars were out in the sky. She looked over to her long time friend next to her, he was still in the dark blue guard pants and blue t-shirt from the facility. She knew in her heart he must have undergone horrible, unspeakable things at the facility. She knew he was acting different too, but they were finally back together and back home, and that was all that matter. "We should go back home to Yuka and the others, they're probably worried sick." Kouta turned to her and spoke. She nodded, smiling gently at him. She looked down the beach of Kamakura and noticed something farther down shore.

"Hey, look... over there." She pointed.

* * *

Kurama and Mariko were sitting outside against the small shack they had been using for shelter for the past few months. They were both staring up at the night sky star gazing. They both enjoyed spending this time together, staring up into space at the bright dots of light in the sky.

"They're so pretty." Mariko commented. Kurama nodded above her as he held his daughter on his lap and in his arms.

"Your mother would have enjoyed this." He told her. "I only wish she were here."

"It'll be ok daddy, cause we're together now." She smiled up at him. Their tender moment was interrupted when Bando came out of the shelter grunting.

"Damn it, we're outta canned goods again!" He yelled. "Grrr, can't wait till I get out of this place next week. After that it's all yours."

"Thank you Bando." Kurama responding, half-laughing.

"Bando!" A young girl was heard calling out. They all looked up to see Mayu there along with the other members of Maple House. Mayu came running down first, she was pressed in a black skirt than reached down past her knees, along with a black sweater and black hairband. She went right up to Bando. "Sorry i'm late today." She handed him over a paper bag. "Here you go, more onigiri!"

"Ah, thanks kid you're a lifesaver." He thanked her with a smile as he took the bag. He looked behind her to notice the other members of Maple House moving towards the ocean. They were all dressed in all black as well. Yuka was wearing a black mofuku kimono, Nozomi and Nana were both in black dresses. "Hey, what's with them?"

"Oh, Yuka wanted to bring some flowers in remembrance of Kouta." Mayu responded somewhat sorrowful. "This was the last place he was before he was taken so we we thought this was best. Don't worry, she's sending them out to sea."

"Ah, alright." Bando responded, deciding it was best not to interfere with such affairs. Mariko got up off her Papa's lap and tugged on him to get up. He stood up as well and she bowed her head in respect, he followed suit. Yuka knelt down at the shore, the ocean calmly in place against the beach. She placed a bouquet of roses on the gently waves and pushed them out to see. They others all watched as they floated away towards the open ocean.

"Kouta, it's been a month since you left us." Yuka began softly. "We've been doing our best to get by ever since. It's hard missing two members of our family. We all miss Lucy too, you are forgiven for what you have done." She began to tear up. "I wish that you were still here, that you could still be with us..." She was now crying. "Kouta please... don't leave me!"

"What are you talking about Yuka?" She heard a male's voice call form her right side. She raised her head up a bit at the familiar voice. She then looked to her right to see her cousin standing right there, with Lucy by his side. For some reason his hair was white now as well. "You're overreacting." Everyone on the beach there was now turned to the two of them, surprised to see them. Yuka suddenly shot up and wrapped her arms around her cousin.

"Kouta! You're ok, I was so worried about you." She cried out. "I thought... I thought you were dead." She began to tear up again, this time out of happiness. She was overjoyed to see Kouta alive again. He stood there surprised by her sudden reaction. "Kouta, what happened to you? Your hair's white as snow." She asked, loosening her grip on him and giving him a worried look. He glanced at her still surprised, but then gave her a warm smile.

"Don't worry about it, the important thing is we're home now." He responded with a gentle tone. Just then, there were more people heard on the beach. Kouta turned behind him to see a small raft land on the shore behind them. The agent from the facility stepped off onto shore carrying Anna, who was now wrapped up in a blanket. The agent noticed the group already on the beach while Kouta was turned back. The two of them exchanged glances, Kouta giving the same grim look as before, as if the two of them were making sure the other wouldn't suddenly attack. Instead the agent walked over to the wall at the opposite end of the shore and placed Anna down there, then sitting down as well.

"Kouta, who's that?" Yuka asked.

"No clue." He responded. Arakawa then stepped off the raft as well, clutching the small cooler in her arms. Kurama recognized her from across the group. he made his was over to her.

"You, you were Professor Kakuzawa's assistant that the chief brought to the facility, right?" He asked her. Arakawa nodded.

"Mhmm."

"What happened?"

"The whole island sank." She told him. "A big hold appeared in the middle of it that seemed to go down forever, the island began to collapse inward and the ocean rushed in. The whole place in underwater now." Everyone aside from those who were there was shocked. Yuka let go of Kouta.

"Kouta... did you two have something to do with that?" She asked.

"Ah, well sort of." He responded rubbing the back of his head. "She's the one who made the giant hole though." He pointed over to the currently unconscious Anna.

"Who is she?" Nana asked.

"Anna Kakuzawa, the Chief's daughter." Lucy told them. Kurama looked over to the girl shocked.

"He had a daughter?" He asked in wonder.

"Yeah, he did some sort of experiment on her and made her a gigantic monster to increase her brain size, make her able to know almost anything. But she was still there in the middle of the thing." Kouta explained. Just after he did, Anna began to slowly open here eyes and come too.

"Where... where am I?" She asked in a groggy tone.

"Kamakura." The Agent told her. Here eyes were now wide open as she viewed the nighttime beach. She then looked down to see her own flesh and blood hands for the first time in years.

"Anna is... alive? Then father didn't modify me." She was astounded. "He meant it, he really isn't such a cruel father."

"Maybe, maybe not." Kouta told her, causing her to look over to the familiar white haired boy in surprise. "Maybe he did do it out of what little goodness was left in his heart, or maybe he intended it to be a fail-safe. Give his great creation a mortal core, that way if you ever disobeyed him he could terminate his creation. I really don't know." Kouta then turned away from her, staring out into the vast ocean. Anna looked down with a grief stricken face as she began to think about what Kouta had just told her.

"Then... is head dead? Chief Kakuzawa?" Kurama asked.

"No..." Kouta replied in a darker tone than was usual for him. "He got away." He began to ball his fists.

"Then I suppose he will get to see his dream become a reality." Kurama began to look off. "In just 5 years, the virus released over the bay will take full effect and humanity will be wiped out." Yuka, Mayu, and Nozomi both looked at him horrified. They were the only ones who did not know what he was talking about.

"No it won't." Arakawa responded. "I have the cure right here." She nodded down to the red cooler in her hands. Kurama gave it a very surprised stare.

"Then... the virus can be stopped. Humanity has a future."

"It's over." Lucy stated, walking over to her friends. "We can finally all go back home." She smiled at her room mates, glad to finally be able to return home. Kouta stayed where he was, still a bit away from everyone else but he smiled at her too.

"No it's not." Anna spoke up, all eyes were on her now. "Father had a contingency plan, in case the Lebensborn ever failed. Dr. Nousou had made cloned Diclonii. He tried to keep it as a surprise to father, but father has a way of learning about things. He had an army of them planned in case his Lebensborn didn't succeed for any reason. He has ready to make about 5000 clones, of the strongest Sipleit." She pointed over towards Mariko, who looked stunned. "He has them all stored on another island that I do not know the location of. They are still embryos though, so it will take some time for them to mature, but he can accelerate that. I had predicted that it would take about 5 months, and he would attack the area that would yield the most results. His backup plan is an all out war on mankind, starting with an invasion of Tokyo." Everyone was silent. Chief Kakuzawa was crazy enough to attempt an all out assault on mankind, a full fledged Diclonius War.

"I see..." The Agent said disheartened before standing up. "I suppose I should alert Saseba, they'll want to know about this."

"Well, then they'll stop him and we'll be ok here right?" Mayu asked, sounding like she wasn't fully convinced and was still concerned.

"Of course Mayu." Yuka smiled over at her. She noticed Kouta seemed rather angry however. He was making a face like he was trying to hold his rage back as he stared at the ground. He was also balling his fists again. "Kouta, you should probably change your hair color when we get back home too." She tried to snap him out of it. He looked up at her like he was just pulled out of a trance, then smiled at her. "People might think things seeing you walking around with-"

"I'm not coming back to Maple Inn." He suddenly told them, giving the other residents all shocked looks.

"Oh, I see.." Yuka responded with some sorrow.

"I'm sorry, but... there's no way i'm going to let that maniac get away with something like that. Besides, I have friends in Tokyo. Friends I have to warn and protect."

"But Kouta, then what will you do?" Mayu asked.

"I'm going to train and get ready, and in 5 months time i'll be waiting and i'll stop him... then i'll kill him." This was a shock to everyone there who knew him. Kouta did not kill people, this was not normal for him to say. Kurama remained silent but he understood. He knew that a person's hair turned white after going through a great deal of stress. He knew the boy must have been undergone unspeakable experiments, and that must have very negatively affected his psyche.

"Anna doesn't want her father to die..." She began. "But I also understand... he must. He has abandoned Anna anyway." She buried her face in her knees. Kouta glanced over to her.

"Yuka, why don't you take Anna back to Maple Inn with you guys?" Both Yuka and Anna looked surprised to hear Kouta say that. "She doesn't have any other place to go, so why not take her back with everyone."

"Ok, but..." Yuka looked down and began to trail off. "Kouta, after this will you come back home?" She asked softly.

"Yes." He smiled at her warmly.

"Promise?" She asked him through tearful eyes.

"Promise." He responded back. "I'll be back after 5 months time."

"I wanna come with!" Everyone looked over surprised to see Mariko suddenly shout that out.

"Mariko?" Kouta asked.

"It's because of you Kouta that I got to live and spend this wonderful time with my father. I wanna help you out in order to repay you for what you did." She explained, taking him totally by surprise. "Besides, those clones are of me. I can't just let someone make thousands of clones of my and use them for nefarious purposes."

"Alright." He responded. "You can come with." He looked over to the Queen Diclonius. "What about you Lucy?" She looked surprised. "This is your fight too, this man has done terrible things to you. Do you want to get your revenge?" She was silent for a moment.

"No, I don't care about revenge anymore. I want to come with to be alongside you." She smiled gently at him, and he smiled back.

"Nana wants to come with too!" She exclaimed.

"Alright Nana, we could use your help too." Kouta told her, partially chuckling.

"This might seem odd but..." The agent approached Kouta. "I would like join along and offer my support as well. I can offer you the support of Saseba, we're another military group funded directly by the government. We were doing research into using vectors as weapons. I should be able to help find you all a place to stay and cover living expenses, as well as give you strong support. What do you say? Shell we form our own army?" The agent offered their hand to Kouta, who looked at it for a second, considering the offer.

"Alright." He shook the agent's hand. "Let's work together."

"Hey, you're not forming a killing party and forgetting me are ya?" Bando shouted in a gruff voice.

"Ah, Bando. You want to come with us as well?" Kouta asked, giving him a suspicious look.

"Look, I know I tried to kill your girlfriend and all but i'm being honest here. No way in hell am I gonna let some psychopath invade a whole city and try to wipe out mankind. You can count me in on this, I promise I won't try and her this time or nothing." Kouta continued to give him a suspicious look.

"Alright fine, but I warn you. If I find you being 'unnecessary' i'll kill you." Kouta warned him with a dark tone, and menacing glance.

"Heh, don't worry about a thing." Bando grinned, relishing the company of someone so strong and now no longer holding back.

"Kouta, I want to come with too!" Yuka declared.

"Yuka, finals are next week for this semester right?" Kouta asked her. "You should finish up at the college, then next semester you can find a better college. You don't have to go to this safety school for me anymore. I know you can get into a good school, so go and live your life. Find a better school and stop holding yourself back for my sake."

"Kouta..." She responded, not sure what else to say.

"Besides, everyone else can take care of themselves in a fight. I don't know what I would do with myself if you got hurt because of me." He stared down at the ground. "I'll be back when this is all over, I promise." The two cousins stared at each other for a moment.

"Ok, you better." She finally smiled him. He nodded back to her and turned to leave down the beach. Mariko tugged on her Papa and he came with. Then Kouta, Lucy, Mariko, Nana, Kurama, The Agent, and Bando all left Kamakura for Toyko. They had 5 months to prepare before a total invasion of Tokyo would commence. They were getting ready for an all out war. Meanwhile Arakawa took her vaccine and went to get it mass produced, while Yuka, Mayu, and Nozomi took Anna back to Maple House with them. Yuka took one last look at the unlikely alliance as they made their way down the beach, and she had a sinking feeling as if this was the end of an era in their life.


	11. Homecoming

Two men walked through the halls of an apartment complex in Tokyo. It wasn't anything high end, and in fact was just outside one of the seedier parts of the city. The halls were painted an off yellow and the floor was white carpeting. The one man had blonde hair that was partially spiked up, and the other short black hair with a naval cap and uniform on him. The two of them went up to room 106 on the second floor and knocked on the door in the secret pattern they had been told to. The blonde man knocked twice quickly, then a short pause and another knock. They waited a moment before hearing the pulling of a lock chain and unlocking of the door. The door creaked open and the Agent's head peaked out from inside. "Ah, you're here." they were greeted. "Please, come in." The door was opened all the way for them. The two men stepped inside the cheaper apartment that was painted the same as the hall outside. "Allow me to introduce you to mankind's defense force." The agent said to the two men as they entered the cheap Tokyo apartment. The inside was painted the same off yellow as the hall with the same white carpeting. The agent promptly closed and locked the door behind the two men. When they stepped in they found there was already a small group inside. This small rag tag group of warrior were going to stop an invasion of Tokyo, and by extent save mankind. At first glance, they were nothing special.

"This is it? You're going through all this trouble for this?" The man asked confused.

"I know it doesn't seem like much, but our little renegade force is preparing to stop an invasion force of Diclonii." The agent responded. In the living room was an L shaped couch with a coffee table clsoe enough for one to put their feet up. Which is exactly what Bando. He was sitting on the short part of it with his arms outstretched to either side and his feet up. The man noticed his rougher build and recognized him as a soldier who must have had some combat experience at least. On the longer part of the couch he was surprised to see two Diclonii there. That was Mariko and Nana, who bath sat on the couch smiling. Leaning against the corner close to them was Kurama. The man recognized him too from the reports. He was once the Director at the old research institute but left after his daughter was being used by the Chief. There was another Diclonius there too, this one almost made his jaw drop. There sitting on an arm chair a little distance away from the couch with her arms crossed and a pissed off look was Lucy.

"What is she doing here?" He demanded.

"Sorry sir, I didn't want to give away too much when I summoned you but Lucy's on our side now." The agent replied. The blonde man was bewildered.

"But whatever for?"

"Because I don't want this to continue any longer either." Lucy replied herself. "I've had enough killing and destruction to last me several lifetimes, and it all ends here. I want to put a stop to this and then just go and live as normal a life as I can."

"I see." The man eyed her up curiously. "After you caused all this mess now you're finally taking some responsibility for it?"

"Yes."

"About time." He replied, looking to see the last member of that apartment. He was a teenage boy in his college years. His hair was pure white, and he was leaning against a wall between the kitchen and living room. He was watching the man as if to make sure he wasn't going to hurt anyone. Which after his exchange with Lucy was exactly what he was doing.

"Everyone, this is the the head operative at Saseba, my commanding officer." The agent introduced the man.

"And this is the Fleet Commander of Saseba's naval forces." The operative introduced his friend in the naval uniform. The man nodded and tilted his hat to the others.

"Sir, i've been going under the codename Kuro around them so please use that for now. This is Bando, he's former SAT and has his fair share of fighting Diclonii." Bando grinned at the operative. "This is Mariko, a very powerful Dicnoius who was the original of Kakuzawa's clones. She's Kurama's daughter. Next to her is Nana, another Diclnoius from the facility, she has the ability to disable the vectors of other Diclonius, and interestingly enough has never hurt another human being with her vectors. You already know Kurama and Lucy, and finally over there is Kouta. He's the ghoul I mentioned in my report."

"So, that's him?" The commanding operative asked, looking over at Kouta. "Is it true, does your kind really eat people?"

"Yeah, we do." Kouta responded in a rather stand-offish tone. "No one is proud of it, but that's the way it is."

"So then, we have a mercenary, two silpeits, the old Director, Lucy, and this ghoul-boy?" He asked.

"For now, I was hoping you and the rest of Saseba would be willing to help us out when the time comes." Kuro asked the commander.

"Of course we will, now that we're here we can get to planning out a strategy." The operative walked over closer to the table. "Our friend the Fleet Admiral here is willing to lend us his forces to help from the sea during the attack. Since we were told his forces are on an island somewhere it's most likely they'll attack from the sea."

"Even if they don't, we'll be able to offer plenty of long range missile support." The Admiral added.

"Plus, we've been working on a new weapon to use against the Diclonius." The operative pulled out a tablet and began to go through some files on it. He eventually brought up what he needed and placed the table face up on the table for all to see. "Vector Attack Craft, a weapon capable of deploying massive and powerful vectors in order to move and wipe out Diclonii. It also has a special vector cancelling field that can be used to protect itself from the vectors of the Diclonii."

"So essentially, it's a giant vector tank perfect for wiping out Diclonius?" Kurama asked.

"Exactly, with these things we'll be unstoppable. Additionally we'll have our own one thousand men on the ground. They might outnumber us,but we'll be better equipped. We're also going to rearm and refit our men. Those puny 9mm submachine guns won't do anything to the Diclonius forces. We'll be outfitting them all with Self-Defense force standard How Type 89 rifles. The 5.56 round is too fast for most Diclonius to stop. Any rifle that fires over 800 meters a second is too fast for them to stop, as well as rifle rounds larger than a 7.62 and handgun rounds .44 magnum or higher. Which means we'll also be giving all our operatives Anaconda revolvers as sidearms."

"Heh, hey pick me up something new while you're at it." Bando added.

"Will do." The head operative replied. "If Kakuzawa reaches Tokyo by land instead we'll be ready for him. Either way, we will win this." He took his tablet back. "Still, we're not much. So if anyone has any ideas i'm open to hear them."

"I'm going out." Kouta told everyone. "I know a group of ghouls who I used to live with when I stayed in Tokyo, they'll help us out."

"Other ghouls? Are you sure?" The head operative asked.

"I'm sure, they' don't kill people and they live peacefully with their ghoul sides hidden. They're good people, I trust them."

"Very well, go and ask for their assistance. I'll take all the help I can get." Kuro replied. Kouta nodded and went over to the coat hanger on the wall near the door.

"Lucy, why don't you come with me?" He turned back around to ask her. "It'll be easier for me to explain things if you're there with me."

"Alright." Lucy replied, sounding somewhat unsure. She got up from her chair to get her coat as well. Kouta got his black windbreaker on that had two white stripes on both sides than ran down the length of the sleeve. Lucy had a pink fleece jacket that buttoned up, and a blue knit hat to cover up her horns. She had many different disguises for her horns but that had was her favorite. It reminded her of the one Kouta had given her when they were young. Even though it was not the same it brought back many happy memories. The two of them exited the apartment and made their way for the 20th ward.

* * *

The sun was already going down when the two of them left, so it was already dark when they were finally getting close to the 20th ward. The two of them had decided to walk as neither thought about taking money for the bus, plus they did not know the schedule yet. So they took a somewhat long walk over to the small coffee shop in the 20th began to feel nervousness bubble inside of her. She was unsure what to think about meeting these people. She knew they were Kouta's friends and had to be nice, and they also weren't human like her so they must know how hard that is. But does that mean they'll accept her? What her horns freak them out? What will they think once they find out the truth about Kouta's little sister and father? He didn't know back then but he did now. Would they hate her like she thought the others at Maple Inn would? They didn't though, so maybe these people wouldn't either. So many uncertainties ran through her mind. Her silent train of thought went interrupted when Kouta stopped and spoke up. "We're here." He told her. She turned to see what he was facing, a rather bright looking coffee shop that went by the name Anteiku. This was the place where Kouta had worked for months and where he had learned how to blend into the human world. He took a deep breath as all the memories came flooding back. The smell of coffee filled the air outside the shop from within. It was a smell Kouta had dearly missed. Even Lucy, while still nervous, enjoyed the smell of coffee coming from inside the shop. The lights were still on, which meant that people were still inside. It was late however, and likely that the shop would close soon. Kouta opened the door and stepped inside, Lucy followed behind and stayed close to him once inside. There were two people still in the shop, both of them employees. They were Touka and Enji, both cleaning coffee mugs with white rags. Enji was behind the counter and Touka on the other side. Both of them looked towards the door as they heard the bell ring. They both saw two teenagers enter. A boy white white hair and a bored looked, and a female with pink hair who they felt was a bit nervous. Touka turned to the two of them with a mug still in hand.

"Ah, i'm sorry but Anteiku is currently closed. You'll have to come back tomorrow." She told them, thinking they were just normal customers. Enji leaned in and whispered something about an anime convention being in town as a joke, which Kouta picked up on with his heightened hearing. It must have been odd for the two of them to see twp people walk in with white and pink hair. So Kouta smiled warmly back to her.

"What's the matter Touka, don't you recognize me?" He responded. Touka looked over to him oddly for a second, taking a moment to eye him up. When it finally came to her, her eyes widened and she dropped the mug. Enji looked over to her in concern as she had been working there long enough to manage to avoid doing something like that.

"Kouta..." She replied softly. Enji's head snapped over to the boy as Touka came to realize it.

"What? Kouta?" He was amazed to see him all of the sudden, and he looked very different than he had all those months ago. It had been close to a year now since he left, what had happened to him in that time. Footsteps were heard rushing down the stairs from above. Another boy around Kouta's age descended from the steps with a young girl following right behind him.

"I heard something break, what happened?" Nishiki asked in concern. He then noticed the shop had two guests. Hinami stood behind the ghoul waiter and looked over to the two unusual looking guests.

"Kouta's back." Enji told his co-worker. Nishiki looked over in surprise at the white haired boy.

"Hey Nishiki, long time no see." Kouta greeted him.

"Onee-chan!" The youngest girl ran over to Kouta with a huge smile on her face. She hugged him tightly when she got there, and he hugged her back.

"Good to see you again Hinami, I think you've grown since the last time we met." Lucy smiled at this warm reunion between the two. It was almost as if Kouta had a little sister again. She was glad that he had someone like that, it didn't fix it but it must have helped what she had done. "Sorry to drop in unannounced on you guys. There's someone I want you to meet. This is..."

"I know who she is." Hinami spoke up. Both her and Kouta looked down nervously at her. Had she really heard about Lucy before. Hinami smiled up at her. "You must be onee-chan's girlfriend." Kouta and Lucy suddenly turned a deep shade of red.

"What?! No, it's not like that... this is Lucy, she's just my friend." Kouta retorted it defense.

"Oh yeah, then why did your face get all red?"

"Hinami, just what are you implying?" She giggled a little.

"I'm just joking onee-chan, it's nice to meet you Lucy." Hinami smiled at her.

"It's good to see you again Kouta." Nishiki finally greeted his old friend.

"You too, it's been far too long." Kouta responded.

"So what brings you back to Anteiku?"Enji asked from over the counter. Kouta suddenly stiffened up and seemed much more serious. This was seen as odd by all the others at Anteiku. Kouta was usually a happier and more cheerful person, he usually was not dead serious like this.

"Sorry to drop by like this all of the sudden with any warning, but something's come up. I need to see Yoshimura." Kouta told his old friends, all of whom were giving him strange looks. They weren't sure what was going on but something was definitely not right. Touka glanced over to Lucy and gave her a look of suspicion. As if she wasn't sure if Lucy could be trusted or not. It was one she was used to getting. Kouta picked up on this too. "Don't worry about her, she already know about me and about this place. You can trust her." Touka still kept her eyes on Lucy.

"Alright, if you say so." Touka replied a little more coldly. The employees led the two up the stairs into one of the many rooms of Anteiku. For Kouta is was a nice familiar scene, walking down those halls once more. Lucy still felt rather unsure however and stayed in the back of the group close to Kouta. They were led to one of the room where Yoshimura was. When Enji opened up the door, Yoshimura was inside sitting down with a cup of coffee in his hands. Yomo was there with him as well with his own cup of coffee. The two of them looked as the door was opened to their room. They saw the staff of Anteiku and Hinami, along with two other unfamiliar teenagers.

"Ah greetings, I was just enjoying a cup of coffee and a chat with my friend Yomo here. What brings you all here?" He asked in a gentle voice. Lucy's first impression of the man was that he was a kinder person than most. That surprised her being that she knew he was the leader of a group of ghouls. He gave off the vibe of being a gentle person that cared for others.

"Someone came to see you, and old friend." Enji responded to his boss, stepping aside for Kouta to step forward.

"It's been awhile old man." Kouta greeted his former employee with a smile. Yoshimura was unsure who he was at first glance, however after hearing his voice he recognized the young man.

"Kouta, is that you?" Yoshimura responded, setting his cup of coffee down on the table. Yomo even looked a little surprised as well but stayed quiet. "Indeed it has been a long time. Please, sit down, all of you." He welcomed them into the room. They all took seats around the table, Lucy sitting right next to Kouta when they did. "So tell me, who is this young lady you brought with you?"

"This is Lucy, she's a friend of mine I wanted you all to meet." Kouta explained motioning towards her.

"Oh I see, Lucy my dear, what has Kouta told you about this shop?" Yoshimura asked her with a smile.

"I know that everyone here but me is a ghoul, and that you helped Kouta after the accident he had." Lucy responded dropping any pretense.

"My, very forthcoming aren't you?"

"I don't like dealing in the third degree." She told him.

"No one does, but sometimes it is necessary." He then turned to Kouta. "So tell me, what brings back here after all this time?" Kouta was silent for a moment, and looked very stern at everyone in the room. Kouta exhaled and took a deep breath before explaining.

"In about 5 months from now, Toyko will be invaded." Everyone in the room save for Lucy suddenly looked very shocked.

"What do you mean?" Yomo spoke up. "Who would invade Toyko, and what kind of power would they have to attempt something like that?" Kouta looked over to Lucy.

"Lucy, show them." Kouta told her. She looked at him a little unsure, but he gave her a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, they trust you so you can trust them." His words comforted her and made her feel more sure about it. She faced the others and took off her hat. There was silence for a moment as the others stared at her horns. It made her feel uncomfortable.

"You have horns?" Hinami asked Lucy in a rather innocently voice. "How come?"

"I am not human either." She replied. "I am a Diclonius, another branch species from humans. But these horns are not the only thing different about me." She sent out her vectors and used them to lift a few pencils off the table. The others all looked astonished to see three pencils suddenly float in air.

"Woah!" Enji shouted standing up.

"What the?" Nishiki stared in amazement.

"Ah!" Touka looked at them in wonder.

"Wow, how do you do that?" Hinami asked smiling in amazement.

"It's a special power that my kind have, we have several extra invisible arms called vectors. They can not only be used to pick things up beyond our physical strength, but they can destroy matter on contact." The others all watched as one of the three pencils was sliced in half. The two halves along with the other two pencils fell back to the table as Lucy withdrew her vectors.

"Then are you telling us that an army of Diclonius will invade Tokyo?" Yoshimura asked. Kouta nodded in response.

"In about 5 months from now an army of 5000 cloned Diclonii will invade Toyko." He informed the others. "Their leader is a psychopath named Kakuzawa, he intends to wipe out humanity and have the Diclonius replace man as the dominant species on earth. We ruined his earlier project with that, now he's going to attempt a full out war against all of humanity." Everyone was starting wide eyed at Kouta, save for Lucy who already knew all of this. "I came here to ask you guys if you will help us fight when the time comes."

"You're planning on taking on a whole damn army by yourself?" Touka asked, sounding like she was rather irritated with him.

"No, of course we. We have a small band of forces already together. Besides us two, there are two more Diclonii, a highly skilled mercenary, a spy, and a whole section of forces from a research institute that did research into the vectors of the Diclonius. We have our own little army but they still outnumber us 5 to 1. I'm sorry to just drop in all of the sudden after all these months and then on top of that ask you to fight for us, but I didn't know what else to do. Besides, even if you don't wish to help us I feel like I still owe it to you guys to warn you."Everyone was silent for a moment as they all just stared at Kouta. None one was really sure how to respond.

"Yoshimura, what do you think?" Enji asked his boss while crossing his arms. "You're the one in charge at Anteiku and you always have good judgement. So whatever you think i'll follow."

"Ah, does this go for the rest of my staff as well?" Yoshimura asked. There were nods all around the room from Touka, Nishiki, and Hinami. Even Yomo as well. "Well then..." He stood up. "Kouta, even though you have been gone for months I still consider you one of us here at Anteiku. And we always help out our own here, so when the time comes we will fight beside you and your allies." Kouta smiled at his elderly boss. "On one condition." He smiled back playfully.


	12. Anteiku

"How did I ever agree to this?" Lucy wondered as she saw her Anteiku uniform. She was now dressed in a white dress shirt with red tie and a black vest on top. She was also wearing a black short skit with black stockings and dress shoes.

"Because the old man isn't going to help you unless you work here just like the rest of us." Touka reminded her.

"Aww come on, it's not so bad." Kouta reassured her, now dressed in his old uniform as well. He smiled warmly to her. "Besides, I think it looks cute on you." Her face began to turn deep red shade after he said that, which did not go unnoticed by Touka and Nishiki who were also in the room and dressed for work.

"Th-thank you but it's not the uniform I have a problem with." She told him as she pulled a black ribbon out of her pocket. "You should know by now I don't really like other people." She said as she began to tie bows in her hair to cover her horns.

"Preaching to choir on that one." Touka replied, showing her own distaste for people. Just as she finished tying the bows to cover her horns the door to the upstairs room opened up. Enji now joined the staff.

"There you all are, we're ready to start setting up for today." He greeted them all. "Lucy, I am the supervisor here, so if Yoshimura isn't around come to me with any questions you might have alright?"

"Very well." She replied. Enji led them all downstairs to the coffee shop portion of Anteiku. It was a very bright and cheery place that smelled of quality coffee. "Now we have a routine we go through every morning before opening. I'll run you through it and help you out. I'm sure anyone else here is willing to help you as well so don't be afraid to ask." Enji told Lucy as he went behind the counter. The bell chimed as the door to Anteiku opened. An older woman around Enji's age with long black hair stepped it. She to was also dressed like one of the workers. "Ah, Kaya. Fashionably late again I see." Enji greeted sarcastically her as she came through the door. She took a look over to see two unfamiliar employees in the shop.

"Did we get new employees last night or something?" She asked, her expression rather bored and not caring.

"Only one, that's Lucy. Lucy, this is Kaya Irimi." Enji introduced the two of them. "Kouta brought her here, he's back as well." He motioned over towards Kouta.

"Hey Kaya, long time no see." He greeted her. Her facial expression actually changed to a wide eyed and confused one.

"What happened to you?" She asked, going back to her usual more reserved self.

"Oh..." He looked down with a half-eyed look and a faint little smile. "It's a long story." Everyone in the shop was now giving him confused looked. He was definitely acting different than when he last worked there.

"Anyway, Yoshimura's in the basement. Go see him first, he needs to explain some things to you." Enji told Kaya.

"Alright." She made her way for the steps, then descending downstairs into the basement where the large freezer was. "Lucy, why don't you come back here so I can show you how to operate a register?" Enji gave her a friendly smile.

"Oh, sure." She agreed, surprised to see him being so welcoming of her.

* * *

"So we're going up against an army huh?" Kaya asked in the basement of Anteiku just outside the freezer.

"That's right, in about 5 months from now." Yoshimura confirmed. "I won't ask you to job if you do not wish of course."

"Are you kidding? After all you've done for me how could I not?" She responded tilting her head and smiling.

"Glad to hear it, we'll definitely need help for a ghoul as strong as yourself."

"Still... i'm not exactly sure what to think of this Lucy."Her smiled faded from her face.

"If I remember you told me the same thing about Kouta when he first started working here. But you took to him just as quickly as the others." The owner replied while chuckling a little.

"He was always bright and happy despite what had happened to him. It was a nice change from out otherwise bleak lives. Still... what happened to him? He seemed to be acting a little odd, and his hair is all white." She noticed Yoshimura's face suddenly stiffen up and he looked rather solemn.

"I haven't told the others about this yet, but I had Yomo do some info gathering about Kouta's time in Kamakura. He paid a visit to my old friend Dr. Kaimei. It seems not long ago Kouta was kidnapped and taken to an island that had a facility that did research on the Diclonius. From what I have gathered, it is most likely that Kouta was tortured there. I imagine he must have suffered some mental trauma while he was there. Added onto his already existing mental instability from his family's death, it must have caused some sort of breakdown for him." Maya stared at him wide eyed after he explained that. She then turned her head and looked off.

"Poor Kouta."

"Yes, it is unfortunate he had to go through such an ordeal. But he is strong, he will come out on top of this i'm sure." The old man then pulled out a pocket watch and looked at the time. "It seems that Anteiku opens in a few minutes. You should head up and join the others." He put the watch back in his pocket. "I also ask that you keep what I just told you about Kouta between you and I. He will tell them when he is ready, it is not our affair to be meddling in." Kaya nodded before heading back upstairs to start her shift for the day.

* * *

"Lucy, why don't you take a break for a little?" Enji told her after she her last table left. "I've already sent Touka up to the break room, go up and join her for bit."

"Alright." She responded.

"And would you like a cup of coffee as well? Free of charge." Enji smiled as he offered it to her.

"Ah, are you sure?" She responded in surprise.

"Of course" He poured her a small cup on a little coffee platter and gave it to her. She nodded as she took it and headed upstairs to the break room where she first met everyone. When she pushed open the door to the upstairs room she head Touka's voice inside.

"This symbol means 'repent'." Lucy opened the door to find her sitting next to Hinami. Hinami had a book open on her lap and Touka was leaning over and pointing to a symbol on the page. They both looked over towards Lucy as she came into the room. "Oh, Lucy, did you need something?" Touka asked.

"Enji told me it was time for my break and told me to come up here." She replied to the other girl, then coming over and sitting down on another chair.

"Ah, i'm just teaching Hinami here how to read."

"Onee-chan used to do this with me when he was here." Hinami told her with a smile. Lucy gave small little smile back to the young girl. She was glad to see she shared such a bond with Kouta, but it also brought up guilt from what she herself had done to his sister. "Lucy, where did onee-chan live after he moved to that other place?" Hinami asked the Diclonius.

"Oh, he moved into an old restaurant with a group of other people. It was him, me, his cousin Yuka, a girl around your age they adopted named Mayu, Nana who is another Diclonius, and one of Yuka's pupils, a very talented singer named Nozomi. The six of us lived in that house together." She explained.

"Wow, onee-chan lived with a lot of girls." She responded in amazement.

"I'll say." Touka added, crossing her arms and sounding a bit ticked off.

"It was nothing like that." Lucy told her. "It really wasn't planned to be like that, thing just happened."

"How did you end up living with them then?" Hinami asked.

"Kouta and his cousin find me wandering the beach, I was an amnesiac back then?"

"What's an amnesiac?" Hinami asked.

"It means I lost my memories, liked Kouta used to be."

"Used to?" Touka asked.

"He... he got his memories back now." Lucy replied while looking down at her cup of coffee. "So tell me about yourself Hinami." Lucy tried to change the subject. "I noticed you're too young to work here yet you stay here. Why is that?"

"Oh..." She began to look off. "My mom and dad were both killed by the CCG. Yoshimura took me in after that, Kouta and Touka have been like older siblings to me ever since."

"Oh, i'm sorry to pry." Lucy responded, knowing all too well what loss was like.

"It's fine, i'm mostly over it now." She responded.

"But, what's the CCG?"

"What?! Kouta seriously didn't tell you about that?" Touka asked while tilting her head and giving Lucy a 'what the hell?' look.

"No, I was told that if his identity as a ghoul got out his life would be in serious danger but nothing beyond that." Lucy explained, resulting in a sigh from Touka.

"The Center for the Control of Ghouls. They're a government agency tasked with hunting down and exterminating ghouls. They're fucking bastards." Touka spat out that last part with anger. "They took my mother and father as well."

"Oh..." Lucy was almost sorry she asked.

"What about you Lucy, what were you parents like?" Hinami asked her.

"I never knew my parents, I was abandoned in the woods as an infant." She responded with a little emptiness.

"What? Why would someone do something like that?" Hinami asked in horror.

"Why do you think?" She pointed to the bows in her hair. "My father saw these things on my head and left me in the woods to die. People can be cruel like that."

"How do you know your father did it?" Touka asked confused. Lucy stared back down at her coffee.

"The last time I encountered Kakuzawa he told me about it. My father threw me in the woods and left me for dead, but my mother never stopped searching for me. She's gone now though. But I still really wish I could have met her." She smiled just a little at the thought of meeting her mother, even though it could never happen now.

"It seems as if you don't like your horns." Touka noted.

"I hate them!" Lucy spurted out. "I wish I was never born with them, wish I was born normal." She exhaled and tried to regain herself. That came out a lot more agitated than she had wished. "What about you?"

"I don't have horns."

"Very funny." She replied sarcastically. "I mean if it was up to you, wouldn't you rather be born normal?... Just a human with a simple life instead." Touka stared at her silently for a moment and seemed caught off guard.

"Why the hell would I wish for something like that?" She responded. "Yeah, my life isn't perfect and it can be pretty damn rough sometimes. But it's my life, and i'm going to live it. Wishing that it was different would get nothing done and it'd just make me miserable. So i'm going to continue living my life, no matter how bleak it may get. Because it's mine and mine alone." Lucy looked at her silent for a moment. She then looked back down once more.

"Hey Touka..." She spoke in a softer voice.

"What is it?"

"Thanks." Lucy gave a friendly smile to the other girl, taking her by surprise. "I think I needed to hear that."

"...Yeah." Touka smiled back to her. Lucy finally took a sip of her coffee.

"Oh wow, this is really good." She stated after having her first taste.

"Well yeah, it's all prepared right." Touka told her.

"Back at home I only ever had it out of that coffee maker in the kitchen."

"Please, that stuff is nothing compared to how we make it here."

"It is very good." There was suddenly a knock on the already open door. The three girls looked over to see Kouta standing there in the doorway with Nishiki right behind him.

"Sorry to interrupt this heart warming bonding, but Enji says for you two to come back down so me and Nishiki can take our breaks."

"Oh, alright." Lucy responded. Touka got up first and headed straight for the door. Lucy picked up her cup of coffee and offered it to Kouta as he came in. "Here Kouta, I couldn't finish this so you can have the rest if you'd like."

"Ah, thanks Lucy." He thanked her as he took the cup and plate from her hands. She smiled back at him as he did so. Touka turned back to the two of them and Nishiki watched from right beside her.

"They make a cute couple don't they?" Nishiki asked, making sure he was quiet enough for neither of them to hear him.

"...Yeah, I guess." She responded before heading back downstairs. Lucy followed behind her before Nishiki went down to take a seat. When Lucy got downstairs there was only one customer in the room, he had on blue suit and was reading a newspaper so that his face couldn't be seen.

"I'll get this guy Touka." Lucy offered.

"Go for it." She replied. Lucy went over to the table where the man was sitting.

"Excuse me sir, can I get you anything?" Lucy asked the man in a polite tone.

"I have to ask, how does it feel..." He lowered the paper to reveal that the man sitting there was Kurama. "...being part of the working force now?" She was surprised to see him.

"Oh, the work is easy enough." She replied. Kurama silently stared at her for a moment.

"I'll take a cup of coffee." He told her, then putting the newspaper back up.

"Coming right up." She responded. Lucy then went behind the counter and started making a cup of coffee the way she was show too.

"Do you know that guy?" Enji asked, while cleaning a mug and trying to make it look like he wasn't talking to her.

"Ye, his name's Kurama. He's one of the people that's on our side." She explained.

"Ah, I see." Enji responded. Lucy took the cup of coffee over to him.

"Here you are sir." She told him as she set the cup down next to him.

"Kuro wants to speak with your boss." Kurama told her, making her realize that was the reason he had come there. "Is he here?"

"No, he's out right now and told us he doesn't know when he'll be back."

"I see... in that case tell him tomorrow at 9pm be at our apartment. We'll speak with him there."

"Yes sir." Kurama was surprised to see Lucy acting so polite, watching her as she walked away. He took a sip of his coffee. "That is really good coffee."

* * *

It was past closing at Anteiku, the sky was now dark and the city lights were the only ones around. They were so bright however that they blotted out the stars above. The staff at Anteiku had finished up cleaning and setting up for the next day. "All right, we're all done." Nishiki finally commented after they had finished their work.

"You guys are good to go then, see you tomorrow." Enji dismissed them. Before they could go though, the front door to Anteiku clicked unlocked and then opened. Yoshimura stepped in with his keys still out, dressed in a black trench coat. "Ah, Yoshimura, you've finally returned."

"Yes, it's amazing just how fast time flies when you're meeting with an old friend." He commented, taking off his coat.

"Yoshimura." Lucy approached him. "The other members of our little alliance wanted to meet you, they said to be at our apartment tomorrow at 9pm."

"Ah, I see. Very well, you may tell them that I will be there." He then faced the rest of the staff. "I too have something to say, I have recruited someone else into our forces."

"Really, who?" Kouta.

"Bonjour!" A familiar voice called from outside. A finely dressed man in a purple suit stepped through the door. Lucy noticed the reaction from everyone was a lot less than pleasant. At first they were all surprised, then Touka and Nishiki got into stances like they were about fight while Kouta narrowed his eyes and glared at this man.

"Tsukiyama, so you're still alive." Kouta regarded the man.

"Of course monsieur Kouta, I am a hardy fellow." Tsukiyama responded to him with a smile.

"Old man, you want this bastard to help us? After what he's done?" Nishiki was visibly angry at this.

"Oh come now monsieur Nishino. After Yoshimura came and told me all about this invading army of horned women how could I help but come to help out the heroic defends of the city."

"Kouta, who is this man?" Lucy asked.

"Shuu Tsukiyama, also known as The Gourmet. He tried to eat me and Nishiki's girlfriend." Kouta explained to her.

"And you must be the young mademoiselle i've heard about." He moved closer and bowed to her, reaching out to take her hand. "It is a pleasure to-"

"Don't fucking touch her." Kouta warned, his tone rather sinister and hatred in his eyes as he stared down at Tsukiyama. Tsukiyama looked up in surprise and stood back upright. He wondered to himself for a moment if this was the same boy he had meet all those months ago.

"Right, perhaps I should offer my way of apology to you instead." He bowed towards Kouta. "Forgive me for acting so rudely and inconsiderate towards you and monsieur Nishino. It was awfully rude of me and you have my word I won't try anything like that again. I shall be your sword and your shield in this upcoming battle." Kouta kept his eyes on him for a moment.

"Very well, but I warn you." He bent down and his eyes widened with something akin to madness. "If you try anything like that again, and i'll fucking kill you." Tsukiyama was again surprised.

_Wow, badass mode activated. Now it'll just make it even more worth it when I finally get to eat him._ Tsukiyama thought to himself, barley able to contain his innermost feelings. "I understand." He responded, standing back up.

"This isn't a good idea." Touka commented.

"No need to worry my dear, I promise I will be on my best behavior." Tsukiyama responded with a little smile.

"You better." Kouta warned. He made his own way for the door with Lucy following right behind him. "I'll show you where our apartment is at tomorrow, see you guys later." Kouta told the old man, then said his goodbye to the others for the day.

"Farewell." Tsukiyama waved goodbye.

"Ciao." Kouta responded to him, making Tsukiyama have to catch his breath.

_My I am going to enjoy catching and eating that boy._


	13. Uta

"God damn it!" Bando shouted as he threw his two cards down on the table. He was playing poker with a few of the other members of apartment room 106, using the coffee table to play on. Only Agent Kuro was not willingly participating, as Kouta and Lucy were both at work. Kurama sent his cards down more gently.

"Sorry Bando, some people are just luckier than others." He watched as Nana collected her chips from the table. The clearly had the largest pile of everyone at the table, while the others all had smaller piles of chips. Mariko's was the lowest and she had her face buried right into the table. Nana was bright and cheery as she added onto her already towering piles.

"Wow, Nana likes this game." She smiled cheerfully.

"I need to take you to Vegas with me." Bando noted.

"Absolutely not." Kurama's response was instant but still in his normal tone of voice.

"Bah!"

Knock, knock... knock.

The secret knock on the apartment door was given, everyone stopped and faced the door. Kuro went over and peeked out. "Ah, you're here." He opened it up to reveal Kouta and Yoshimura standing there in the hallway. "Welcome, you may call me Kuro."

"Greetings, I am Yoshimura. Owner of Anteiku." Yoshimura introduced himself.

"Come in, we have much to discuss." Kuro made room as the two of them entered the apartment. She checked both ways down the hall before closing the door and locking it once more.

* * *

The rest of the staff was gathered around the counter, cleaning coffee cups after hours. Lucy and Nishiki were on the store side wiping down the mugs with rags, while Enji and Touka were behind the counter. Kaya was right on the end of it while she cleaned. The were being paid overtime to do some cleaning while Yoshimura and Kouta were at their meeting in another part of the city. "So Lucy..." Nishiki finally spoke up and broke the silence. "How long have you and Kouta been together?" She instantly blushed a deep shade of red.

"We-we're not a couple." She defended. Nishiki chuckled.

"Relax, i'm just messing with you."

"It's not really a secret that you like him though." Touka told her.

"Is it that obvious?" Lucy was still blushing.

"You kinda cling to him and blush whenever he does something nice to you."

"Well... he was the first person to ever be nice to me." Lucy added, smiling a little nostalgically.

"Speaking of Kouta, what happened to him?" Nishiki asked. Lucy's smile suddenly vanished. "I mean, it's not just the hair. He's been acting a lot differently than when knew him back then." Lucy was silent for a moment, then placing her mug on the clean pile and grabbing a new one.

"He was... tortured." They all were looking surprised and horrified at her.

"Tortured?" Touka asked shocked. Lucy nodded, looking like she was about to cry.

"Because he was around me at the wrong time. There were people hunting me down, from a research facility that held Diclonii as prisoners. He never said it outright, but I know he was tortured. He became a lab rat for the most sadistic doctor at that facility, what than man did alone could already make the place a living hell. He must have tortured him, and because of that Kouta is the way he is now." She heldher head down a little. Everyone was silent for a moment as they let that sink in.

"I'm sorry." Nishiki replied.

"It's not your fault, i'm partially the one to blame." Lucy responded.

"Well, on the bright side his amnesia went away right?" Touka tried to lighten the mood.

"Yes, that was awhile ago. He... he remembered things. Remembered his life from before, as well as how his father and sister really died."

"What? I thought Kanae got sick and his dad died in a car crash." Enji responded.

"No, those memories were fabricated. I don't know whether it was by himself or some doctor in order soften the truth about their deaths." Lucy was actually fighting back tears now.

"Then, what really happened." Touka asked. Lucy was silent for a moment.

"I... I killed them." Everyone gasped and looked at her shocked.

"Why the hell would you do a thing like that?" Touka questioned her, sounding rather angry.

"Because..." Lucy was now actually crying and had stopped moving her rag around the cup. "Because I thought Kouta had betrayed me. But I found out too late that he had lied to me in order to protect my feelings. I was a fool." The tears were now streaming down her face. "Back then, I was a bad person. I thought the only way for me to have a place in this world was to make my own. So I killed a lot of people, mostly for nothing. But I always regret that day, it was all my fault. I don't know if Kouta's truly forgiven me or not, but I know I do not deserve it. Yet still, I want nothing more than to be close to him."

"Is that what you really think?" Lucy turned her head abruptly, surprised to hear Kouta's voice. He was standing next to her now, along with Yoshimura. They hadn't even heard the bell ring as they came in, they were all too caught up in Lucy's story. Kouta was just there suddenly, looking at her with a disappointed look. She averted her tearful gaze away from him.

"Kouta, I-" She stopped when Kouta suddenly pulled her in and hugged her. This was the second time in her life that he had done so, and she still enjoyed it just as much as the first. Even though she was hurting from her memories, he was warm and comforting.

"Lucy, I forgive you for what you did. I'm not saying I deserved it for lying to you, but you were alone and afraid. You didn't know any better, you really didn't know anything else. But things have changed now. Yuka and the others have forgiven you and made you welcome back at Maple House, and no one here can really act like they're any better." She turned to the others.

"He's right, I used to be a real rogue back in the day. The Great Devil Ape, I took what I want and i'd kill someone for looking at me funny." Enji told her.

"I used to be a leader of a vicious gang of Ghouls." Kaya added.

"I tried to kill Kouta for walking into my self-claimed hunting grounds." Nishiki added. Touka was the only one who was silent, and everyone then looked to her.

"What?" She responded.

"Touka, you killed a bunch of investigators after Hinami's mother died." Kouta reminded her.

"They fucking deserved it too, especially the one that killed her. He used her dad's kagune to do it." She spat back in anger.

"Yeah, that guy deserved it." Kouta agreed to that "But you killed a bunch at random."

"Look, i'm gonna say they didn't deserve it because they did. But i'm not gonna act like I have any moral high ground over Lucy either." She went back to cleaning.

"That's pretty much the best we're going to get from her." Kouta turned back to Lucy. "Lucy, I forgive you."

"Really?" She asked starting to tear up again.

"Of course, besides, you also know what it's like to live in a world where you feel you don't belong. You feel like a monster too. Maybe before the accident things would have been different, but I feel like I can connect with you since neither of us are human now. So I forgive you." He smiled warmly at her. She buried her face in his shoulder.

"Kouta... thank you." She smiled through the tears. Yoshimura smiled at the two of them in this warm moment.

Kouta, why don't you and Lucy take tomorrow off?" He offered. "You too Touka."

"Wha- are you sure?" Kouta asked surprised. Yoshimura nodded.

"Of course, but I ask that the three of you come and see me around noon. There's an errand i'd like the three of you to run."

"Alright." Kouta responded on the behalf of the three of them. He joined the rest of them in cup cleaning before he and Lucy left home for the night. She felt happy and relieved. Kouta had actually said he forage her. It is what she always wanted. She was looking forward to going back home to Kamakura. Yet, part of her was sad too. She was beginning to feel like Anteiku was her home now too. She would miss everyone when she left, and hoped to see them all again someday. Maybe after Kouta and Yuka had graduated everyone could move to Tokyo.

* * *

The next day at noon, Kouta and Lucy walked into the small coffee shop dressed in normal clothes again. They were both wearing the same jackets they had worn on the night they came to Anteiku asking for help. Enji greeted them as they walked in and told them Touka was already waiting upstairs, and told them to head up. They both nodded and headed up the stairs to the break room. Touka was there like he had said, dressed in a thick blue coat that matched her hair. The two of them sat down, and before they could begin to talk Yoshimura walked in. "Ah, glad to see you all." He greeted them as he walked in and closed the door behind him.

"So what's this errand you want us to run?" Touka asked.

"Simple, I would like the two of you to take Lucy to meet Uta." He explained.

"You want her to help with 'that' too?" Touka asked.

"Of course, she is an employee here and I would ask the same of all my employees."

"What stuff?" Lucy asked.

"Ghoul stuff." Touka explained.

"We'll explain it later." Kouta told her.

"Which reminds me, Kouta, this is yours." Yoshimura pulled something out of his back pocket. He handed kouta something that Lucy was was made out of black leather and had a zipper across it which looked like it was not used for putting it on based on the placement.

"Oh, you actually kept this?" Kouta asked amazed.

"Of course, I had hoped you would return and kept it just in case. Besides, Uta worked hard on that and might be offended if you just abandoned it." He explained.

"What is it?" Lucy asked.

"My mask." Kouta explained, holding out to show her. He held it over his face to give her some idea of what it would look like on him. She noticed the zipper when over the mouth, and there was an eyepatch over his right eye.

"A mask?"

"Now off with you. You can tell here everything on the way."

"Right." Kouta put the mask in his coat pocket and got up. Lucy and Touka did the same and the three of them exited Anteiku. Kouta and Touka led the way as Lucy followed behind, not sure of where they were going.

"So why do you have a mask?" Kouta and Touka suddenly turned down a back road as to not be heard.

"We use it to protect our identities as ghouls, so the investigators don't track us down." Kouta explained. "That's why we're taking you to Uta, he makes the masks for people at Anteiku, and most of the 20th ward for that matter."

"I'm going to need a mask?" She asked.

"Yeah, that way if you're ever out with us doing illegal things you won't get pinned as a ghoul. That would be troublesome." Touka told her.

"I thought you guys just gathered bodies from suicide victims?"

"Told you about that huh?" Touka responded. "Yeah, but getting caught picking up dead bodies isn't exactly normal behavior. No one has caught us yet, but when it comes to the CCG, better safe than sorry."

"Hey by the way, I never got around to ask what ever happened to Loser?" Kouta asked.

"We gave him away to a zoo, too much for us to take care of." Touka responded unusually quickly.

"What?" Lucy asked.

"Loser was a bird we had as a pet for awhile." Kouta elaborated. "But Touka didn't like him."

"I don't like birds." She added.

"Kind of ironic coming from a ukaku user."

"Huh?" Lucy asked. Touka gave her a 'what the hell?' look.

"My kagune?" She asked trying to ring some bells.

"Oh, wait Kouta called them rinkaku before too. What's with that?"

"Damn it Kouta, did you explain anything to her?" Touka shot at him.

"Sorry, I never really got to explaining any of the finer points." He responded rubbing the back of his head. "You see, there are four types of kagune. The first one is the ukaku, which are wings that come out around the shoulder area. They're fast and lightweight but drain the user's stamina rather quickly. Touka has ukaku. The second is koukaku, which are heavy blades or shields that come out right under the shoulder blade. They're defensive but heavy and hard to use. Third is rinkaku, that's what I have. They're scaled tentacles that come out around the mid back. They're agile but the RC cells are brittle and they can break easy. Last is bikaku, which is a tail that comes out around the waist above the ass. They're well balanced and don't really have any weaknesses."

"Wow, then does that mean bikaku ghouls are the strongest?" Lucy asked.

"No, it's sort of like a game of rock, paper, scissors with an extra hand. Every kagune is weak against the one below it, with the bikaku being inferior against a ukaku. But just because you have the type better than your opponent doesn't guarantee victory. Just give you an advantage over them. The same would apply to an investigator's quinque when fighting ghouls."

"A what?"

"Quinque, let me ask you, you saw me go head to head against Mariko and won. So how do you think a normal human would win in a fight against a ghoul?" Lucy was silent for a moment when she came to realize that.

"...I don't know."

"The answer is with RC cells, our biggest advantage is also the only thing that can hurt us. So investigators take kagune from the ghouls they kill and make weapons out of them called quinque. But since they're made from kagune they have the four types too, with the same advantages and disadvantages. you got all of that?"

"I think so." Lucy responded.

"We're here." Touka told the two of them as they came to the place they were headed. Lucy looked to the back alley building that read 'HySy ArtMask Studio'. Touka opened the door and the three of them stepped inside. "Uta!" She called out. The place was rather dark like when Kouta first came. Uta was nowhere to be found, and he wondered if he was going to pull the same prank he did when Kouta first came to the shop. "Hey Uta, where are you?" The three of them spread out around the shop. Kouta and Touka were looking around for Uta, while Lucy was looking at all the masks. She thought they were rather neat and began looking at all of them. She walked towards the middle of the store, her back turned on one that had a white cloth draped over it. Behind her the cloth suddenly began to moved and a person could be seen underneath.

"Boo!" She instantly snapped back at him and gave him a death glare. Uta just sat there like that silently.

"There you are Uta, what are you doing?" Touka asked.

"I was trying to scare her but now i'm the one who's scared." He responded, dropping the white cloth to the floor now.

"Ah, don't worry about Lucy, she's harmless... mostly." Kouta told him.

"Hmm, Kouta is that you?" Uta asked.

"Yeah, how's it going Uta?"

"I have to say I like the hair, I bet your mask fits you even better now."

"Yeah, I guess it does." Kouta responded as he started to think about it.

"We came here because our friend Lucy needs a mask."

"I assumed so." He glanced over at her as he leaned against the pedestal he was just on. "Nice to meet you Lucy, sorry about trying to scare you. My name's Uta. Now let's get your measurements." He grabbed her by the hand and led her over to a small stool on wheels. He took a small measuring tape used by tailors and began to measure around her head. "So I noticed your eyes are already red, rather unusual."

"She's not a ghoul." Touka explained. "Lucy, show him." Lucy took off her blue hat.

"Horns huh?" Uta responded. He began taking measurements of them as well.

"Lucy's another humanoid called a Diclonius. In about 5 months there's going to be an invasion of her kind by a mad man seeking to wipe out humanity. So she's working for us in exchange for our help." Touka explained.

"Ah, a war then is it. Sounds exciting." Uta responded.

"Exciting's not exactly the word i'd use for it." Touka replied.

"Tell me Lucy, does your kind have any other interesting features?"

"Yes, several extra invisible arms called vectors. We can use them to lift things beyond our normal strength or tear most anything apart." Lucy explained.

"Sounds interesting, I sure could use my own extra pair of hands. Would make life a whole lot easier." He began to jot her measurements down. He noticed Lucy was looking over towards Kouta, who was himself looking at some of Uta's work hanging on the walls. "You like him?" Uta asked. Lucy began to blush.

"Well... maybe."

"Yes." Touka responded for her.

"You two not official yet?" Uta asked.

"No... we have sort of a troubled history." Lucy replied.

"Oh, like what?"

"I... I did something very awful to him years ago. He's forgiven me, but I still can't help but feel awful about it. For years I was torn apart by my desire to be with him, and the guilt and knowing I did not deserve it." She began to look down. Uta was silent for a moment.

"Lucy, do you know what this tattoo on my neck means?" He asked.

"No." She responded, looking to him to see it.

"It's in Greek lettering but it's actually Latin. Nec possum tecum vivere, nec since te. It means 'I can live neither with you, nor without you'. I got it to represent the relationship between ghouls and humans, but it sounds like it describes your predicament as well."

"Yeah, i'll say." Lucy began to smile a bit, thinking about that.

"So how do you feel about having those horns used in the design?"

"I'm not exactly too keen on having people see them..." She responded. "But I suppose if i'm wearing a mask it doesn't really matter."

"Great, I think I can come up with something good using the horns."

"Hey Uta?" Lucy asked.

"Hmm?"

"Why are you asking about me so much? I mean, it's unusual for someone to have any interest in me."

"Ah, I like to get to know my clients first. Helps me when i'm brainstorming ideas for their designs. I enjoy doing my job, I take great pride in it. Most of my customers of ghouls of course, but ever now and then I get a human client, and I always get so excited when I do. It makes me feel like we can actually interact in peace." He closed up his little notepad and put it in his pocket. "I think I got all i'll need, i'll drop it off after i've finished it." Uta told her.

"Hey Uta." Kouta called from across the room, then walking over to the others. "Are you gonna join us in 5 months when the fighting starts?"

"Are you kidding? Wouldn't miss it for the world." Uta responded with a smile.

"Glad we can count on you." Kouta replied before heading for the door.

"See you Uta." Touka said her goodbye.

"Bye everyone." Uta waved to them as they left.

* * *

A week later...

Things had stayed relatively the same. Kouta and Lucy both continued to work at Anteiku. She had begun to feel like it was a second home to her, she slowly opened up to the staff there and began to feel like they were her friends now too. Yet still in the back of her mind dwelled the knowledge that the day of invasion grew ever closer. She was worried about what would happen on that day, and what would happen after. She wished to stay at Anteiku yet wished to see everyone at Maple House again too. Never the less, she continued with her job and lived her life.

"Good bye sir, have a nice day." Enji said to the last customer of the day. It was exactly a week since Kouta, Lucy, and Touka had visited Uta. The last customer left for the day and it was time to clean the place up and get ready for the next day. A few moments after that man left however, the bell above the door chimed as someone else stepped it. Enji turned to see Uta step through the door. He had on a black leather jacket and shades to cover his eyes, as well as a black knit hat atop his head. "Ah, Uta. You must be here for Lucy huh?" Enji greeted him.

"You know it big guy, is she here?" Uta responded, lowering his shades as he did so that his ghoul eyes were now visible.

"Yeah, the rest of them are upstairs. Go on up, I gotta lock the place up first." Enji pulled a set of keys out of his pocket and headed for the door while Uta headed for the steps. He ascended upstairs and went to the break room. He opened the door to find most everyone there just as he said. Kouta, Lucy, Touka, Nishiki, Kaya, and Hinami were all gathered around the table and talking. Save for Kaya, who had her face buried in a book.

"Hey Uta." Kouta greeted hi mas he came in the room. "Is it finished?"

"Yep, got it right here." Uta responded, slinging his backpack off his shoulder.

"Well come on then, I wanna see this." Nishiki commented. Uta went behind Lucy as she sat down and rummaged through his bag.

"What are you doing?" She questioned.

"No peeking, I want you to wait until it's on for you to see it."

"...Fine." Lucy kept her facing forward and crossed her arms. She heard the ruffling soon stop and the pack fall to the floor. Then there was a brief blackness as Uta began to put her mask on. The two round eye holes soon came into place though and she could again see the room. She felt Uta fiddle with the straps behind her head as he adjusted the size to make it fit her properly.

"Someone get a mirror." She heard Nishiki call. Then footsteps as someone went over elsewhere in the room then came back. Uta finished by pulling the ribbon out of her hair.

"There, what do you think?" She saw Touka put the stand up mirror down on the table and she saw her mask. The face was a mostly red color, with black circles around the eyes. The mouth had sharp teeth forming an evil little grin, like a child planning a cruel prank, with a black outline around them. Her horns finished the design, giving the image of her being an imp.

"Wow, it's really good." Kouta commented.

"Yeah, good job Uta." Touka responded when she saw it.

"I like it." Lucy responded, holding the mirror closer to her.

"Glad to hear it." Uta responded with a smile. "Now, there's just the matter of the bill..."

"You can give it to me." Everyone looked over to see Yoshimura had joined them. "I'll cover the cost like always."

"Alright old man." Uta smiled a little and pulled the small slip of paper out, handing it to Yoshimura as he walked over.

"Ah... Thank you." Lucy responded to his kindness.

"Of course, I do it for all my employees." He smiled at her as he put the bill in his pocket. "Why don't you take tomorrow off while you're at it? Kouta too."

"R-really?" Lucy responded.

"Yes, of course now that you have your mask though i'm going to ask you to work the night shift tomorrow."


	14. Night out

"You're working night shifts?" Kuro asked confused as he was sitting down with Kouta and Lucy. They were in the apartment of the day they had been given off. It was dark now, so they decided to explain together what was going on.

"That's right." Kouta replied.

"But the shop closes, how can there be a night shift?" Kuro was confused.

"Who's working nights?" Nana asked as she walked in the living room.

"Apparently Kouta and Lucy are working night shifts at a closed coffee shop." Kuro explained.

"Night shift means ghoul things." Kouta elaborated. "Normally just going to gather dead bodies from the spot, but there's always a chance of a fight with some rogue ghoul. We have masks to protect our identities though."

"Masks?" Nana asked. Kouta pulled his leather mask out of he pocked in his zip up black hoodie. He held it up and showed it to Nana, who stared at the thing. "Wow... that's actually kinda cool." She responded.

"Thanks, one of my friends made it just for me. Same for Lucy, she got her own too." Nana looked over to her to see Lucy pull up her own imp mask that was sitting beside her.

"Wow, hey Kouta do you think I could get one?"

"Maybe, i'm sure Uta would be willing to make you one." Kouta smiled at her. "But what we do is dangerous, you have to worry about other ghouls, or worse the CCG."

"What's the CCG?" Kuro asked.

"The Center for the Control of Ghouls, they hunt us down and kill us when we're found out. I've only encountered them once, but they're tough."

"Will they be a threat to our operation?"

"Not likely, we make sure to cover our tracks so either of us getting pinned by them in unlikely." Kouta responded. Kuro was silent for a moment.

"Very well, as long as your friends will help us when the time comes."

Knock, knock... knock.

Everyone there heard the secret triple knock as turned to the door. "That must be for us." Kouta explained, now getting up to go answer the door. He swung it open all the way, instead of checking first like Kuro normally did. He found Yomo standing outside, dressed in a gray trench coat. "Ah, Yomo. Are you going with us?"

"Are you ready?" He responded. Kouta nodded.

"Let's go." Lucy got up from the couch and join her two companions for the night. "We'll be back." Kouta told Kuro before closing the door and leaving. Kuro sighed and went over to lock the door behind them. She had a bad feeling about tonight.

* * *

Yomo led Kouta and Lucy down some back and less used roads on the outskirts of Tokyo. There were some woods by where they were now, and the three of them had all adorned their masks. Yomo was going to lead Lucy to the usual spot where they gathered bodies. She felt nervous about tonight. It was something totally alien to her, the thought of gathering bodies for food. She had seen plenty of death in her life, most of it caused by her. But she usually just left the corpses lay. It was odd to her to seek them out. She had gotten used to the idea of Kouta eating though. She felt like he too knew what it was like to feel like a monster, he too wasn't given a choice in the matter. She never wanted to be born the Queen Diclonius, destined to put an end to humanity. Just like Kouta never wished to become a half-ghoul and need to eat people in order to survive. He was a monster in the eyes of humanity now too, just like her. It comforted her knowing someone else could relate to her pain, but also pained her that it had to happen to Kouta. She loved him, she always had. He was the first person to ever be sincerely nice to her, he even liked her horns and called them cool. She always felt warm and content around him, she loved the feeling. But he had to endure hardships too because of what he is. Knowing that hurt her, she hated the idea that he was in pain.

"Through here." Yomo lead them down a small path into the woods. They wouldn't be seen there. It was dark in the woods, Yomo and Kouta used their hearing and smell to guide them more than sight. Lucy stayed even closer to Kouta than she usually did. The three of them made their way through the dark woods until they saw a little light in a clearing up ahead. "We're here." Yomo stated as they found the spot below the cliff. Lucy looked over and saw a body lying there. It looked like whoever it was had died recently too as there was still color in the skin. The three of them walked over to it and stared at it for a moment. Yomo put down a large empty duffle bag he had over his shoulder and set it on the ground.

"What are you doing?" Lucy asked.

"We have to make it fit." Yomo responded as he grabbed the arm of the body. He tore the forearm off with a gush of blood and stuffed it in the bag. Both Kouta and Lucy were unphased by this. Kouta had seen it enough times now that he was used to it. Lucy was used to the idea of death and mutilation all together. The first time Kouta almost threw up though, mutilating the dead bodies disgusted him almost more than having to eat them. But after several trips with Yomo and at one point helping Kouta got used to it. He and Lucy now just stayed as a lookout while Yomo got to work. Lucy noticed where the light in the clearing was coming from.

"What's that over there?" She asked as she walked towards the cliff. There were candles of all sorts of colors on a small edge on the cliff. There were also a few flowers on the ground near the ledge, as well as someone's framed photo sitting in the center of the ledge. Yomo and Kouta both looked over to it. Even though most of his face was hidden, it was still clear that Kouta's face saddened.

"It's someone's memorial." Kouta told her, walking over to look at it next to her. "Someone's friends or family must have left this here after they threw themselves off the cliff. They left this here in their memory." Lucy looked at the shrine a little stunned now. People had left that there because they missed someone who had taken their own life.

"In all my years, no matter how bleak things got taking my own life never seemed like an option to me. I never understood why people would do such a thing."

"They feel they have no other way out." Kouta explained. "They feel that death will be the only escape from their lives. Who knows for what reason, a lost loved one, debt, mental illness. These people probably felt it was better that way, that it would only affect them. But they're wrong, even if they think no one would care. No one dies alone in this world." Lucy looked over to Kouta. He was staring down at the memorial solemnly, feeling sad for the man who died without knowing how much it affected the others around him. He meant it too, even her. Even if she died, he would miss her. So would everyone at Maple House, and Anteiku too. She almost felt like crying, she finally realized just how many people actually cared about her now. She was once alone a year ago, now she had two homes and two families that cared for her. It was more than she could have ever hoped for.

The zipper to the duffle bag zipped close and Yomo threw the bag over his shoulder. "It's a shame, but there's nothing we can do for any of them now. Let's go." Yomo led the way back with a slightly bloody bag over his shoulder.

* * *

They took the back paths and alleys in order to get to Anteiku. This was to help them not be seen, as even though the body was in a bag it was still dripping blood. Kouta and Lucy acted as lookouts for Yomo, making sure it was clear before advancing, passing an intersection, or turning a corner. Kouta could also used his heightened senses to detect anyone lurking nearby or following them. It had never happened to any of the workers at Anteiku, but they had to be careful anyway. They needed to do this, but it also put them at risk. If they ever were seen by so much as a bystander, their whole operation and the coffee shop would be put at risk. But they had to do this, in order to coexist, or at least try to. The CCG was still a very grim reality they had to face every day, physically or not. Anything to give themselves away as a ghoul and they'd be hunted down for the rest of their lives.

So they carefully made their way through back alleys and passageways, making double sure no one would see. They went around to the back entrance of the coffee shop to further avoid detection. "Wait here." Yomo instructed them as he entered in the back door of Anteiku. Kouta and Lucy leaned against the wall on either side of the back door. They were keeping a lookout for any spies or intruders. They had their heads turned opposite directions, facing away from the door as well as each other. They both had their arms crossed as they leaned on the wall. After a few moments Lucy decided to try and break the silence.

"Hey Kouta." She called to him.

"Yeah?" He responded, turning to face her.

"You have off again tomorrow too right?" She asked, turning to face him as well.

"Yeah, why?"

"Well, we've sort of been in the same routine for awhile now. Do you think maybe tomorrow we can go explore the city... together?" She asked him, smiling under her mask. Though he could not tell just by looking at her eyes. He looked at her silent for a moment, realizing that it was basically her way of asking him to go on a date. She couldn't see it either under his mask, but he closed his eye and from the expression he gave her she knew he was smiling back.

"Sure, sounds like fun." She was relieved he agreed to go out into the city with her. She was already planning ideas for the next day in her head. Her happy moment was cut off however when Kouta's facial expression changed to a surprised one. Then it just ask quickly turned intense, as if he sensed danger was near. His left eye shifted into a kakugan, which surprised her to see him change expressions so quickly. One moment he was happy to be with her tomorrow, then in the blink of an eye he was ready for fight. He got off the wall and faced the direction away from the door he was first facing. Lucy looked over to see a figure approaching. A wider man with a pudgy face and short brown hair combed to one side. He was dressed in a beige trench coat that extended down to his black dress shoes, not at all showing his brown pants. He approached from the shadows and headed for the two of them. Kouta stared at the man intently, his single kakugan on display. Lucy watched this strange man step from the shadows as well, not saying a word as he did so. "Who are you? What do you want?" Kouta questioned this man as he came closer.

"Oh, you don't need to worry about who I am." He responded in a deep voice. "All you need to know is someone wants you dead, and i'm the one who's going to do it." He smiled at that last part. His eyes suddenly changed, they turned black showing he was a ghoul too. A thing bright green strands began to form out from above his ass. It coiled behind him revealing a corkscrew shaped bikaku. He had a playfully evil smile on his face as he faced towards his targets.

"Let's go." Kouta accepted this challenge. He let out his own kagune that then pointed towards the man.

"Heh, you think you're going to be me with your inferior kagune?" He taunted, then launching his own kagune forward. The spring uncoiled and launched at Kouta. He avoided it by simply moving his head out of the way. The uncoiled tail zipped past his head and missed him. Kouta ran in to get closer as the other ghoul's kagune had a longer reach. When he got close enough Kouta used his lower right rinkaku to make a swing for him. The other ghoul's kagune re-coiled much quicker than Kouta expected however. He then used the spring to launch himself up in the air and above Kouta's head. Kouta did a quick spin around to keep facing his opponent, who landed between him and Lucy. Lucy attacked next, sending out her vectors to cut the kagune short. However it shot out at her, and the powerful spring piston launched her back. "Sorry Imp, that trick isn't going to work on me." He gloated over her. He arrogance however blinded him to Kouta, who was making another pass at him. This time he used all 4 of his scales to attack from all different directions. The man coiled his tail in front of him to block it, however one part of kagune got through and slapped him in the face. He was sent onto the ground from the force, he got back up grumbling and angry. "You little brat!" Before he could make another mover however, he was blasted by crystal shards from the side. He fell back down the opposite direction, then looking to see Yomo standing in front of the back door to Anteiku. Yomo's ukaku kagune was now out, and crystallized after firing into the ghoul. He got back and tried to attack Yomo now. However when he launched his kagune at him, it was suddenly cut off. He didn't really feel it, to him it was trimming a fingernail, but it was cut in half. Lucy had used one of her vectors to cut through his kagune, the rage making the man forget to listen for her vectors. Yomo fired again, the shards tearing the ghoul apart even farther. He stumbled back, bloodied and cut up from the fight. He used the now shorter coiled bikaku to launch himself again. He didn't go as high, but still managed to get over Kouta. The ghoul then retracted his kagune and retreated back into the alley from whence he came. The three of them all just watched as the defeated ghoul fled.

"Who was he?" Yomo asked.

"He didn't say, just that someone sent him after us." Kouta explained, his left eye reverting back to normal. Yomo was silent about that, just staring off into the alley behind his raven mask.

"You two should go home." Yomo told them. "You've done your part for tonight. Tell Kuro what happened here."

"...Yeah." Kouta responded, staring off into the dark alley as well. He went over to Lucy who was brushing herself off. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." She replied, feeling happy that Kouta was showing concern for her.

"Come on then, let's go home." Thus the two of them walked back to the apartment side by side, the battle still in their minds but both glad to be in the other's company. Yomo watched them as they went to opposite way the man did and went back to their apartment they shared with the others. Yomo then turned to the alley once more, silently contemplating what had just happened.

* * *

"Fucking bastards." The large, corkscrew tailed ghoul cursed as he fell against the cold pavement in a back alley. He was badly injured after trying to fight three opponents at once. Although he was healing quickly, it still hurt like hell and he fell after no longer being able to flee. He was on his hands and knees, kneeling on the cold ground. He was gritting his teeth at the thought of defeat at the hands of such children. If it wasn't for that raven ghoul...

He heard footsteps approach from behind him. He snapped his head around to try and see who it was. A young child approached him dressed it a grey hoodie, along with a black skirt and black leggings, her shoes were nicer black child's shoes. She had her hood up to cover her head, and he face was blacked by a mask resembling a sparrow. She was the person who hired the man to take out Kouta and Lucy. ""You failed." Her rather unfeeling voice reminded him.

"I'll get those bastards, just you wait!" He spat back.

"No you won't. You had your chance to take out Eyepatch and Imp, and you failed. We do not tolerate failures. The deal is off."

"Then what about my money?!" He demanded, now coming to his feet.

"What money? You didn't uphold your end of the bargain. Do you think we still owe you anything?"

"What'd you say to me?" He retorted with anger, his eyes turning back into ghoul eyes. "You little brat, I ought a-" He was cut short when this girl released her own kagune, two ukaku wings on each side and zipped past him. He kagune sliced his head clean off. It flew in the air a couple feet before falling back to the ground. His headless body slumped to its knees, then fell down front first against the ground. Blood poured from his neck and pooled against the ground. The ghoul girl then retracted her kagune back into her body and reached into the pocket of her hoodie. She pulled out a small flip phone and opened it up. She pressed the speed dial button for the only number she had in there and placed the phone against he ear.

"This is Sparrow, the mission was a failure. This useless bastard failed to kill the targets." She spoke into the phone.

"It is no matter. They won't be able to stop us. Report back to base for now." Kakuzawa's voice came from the other end. Sparrow flipped the phone closed and put it back in her pocket. She walked away from the scene silently into the night.


	15. Dinner Plans

Nana yawned as she stepped out of her room and into the hallway. The apartment had only two bedrooms, so she shared one with the other females in the house. Kouta, Kurama, and Bando shared the other one across the hall. Nana rubbed her eyes as she walked towards the living room, still dressed in her purple PJs. "Damn it!" She heard Kuro yell out, slamming her hands the the table. When Nana stepped into the living room she saw Kouta and Lucy sitting down on the long side of the couch, with Kuro on the short end, her fists still on the table and a look of anger upon her face. "I was being so careful, how the hell did he find us?" She cursed.

"What's going on?" Nana asked them from just outside the hall.

"Kouta and Lucy were attacked last night, by another ghoul." Kuro explained, taking her fists off the table. "This ghoul told them someone paid him to try and kill them. Which means Kakuzawa is onto us."

"Hey come on now." They heard Bando call from the kitchen. He stepped into the living room with a can of beer in his hands. "We don't know it was that guy right? Maybe it was someone else who wanted them dead." He snapped open the can of beer and took a swig.

"I'd doubt it. The 20th ward is pretty peaceful, we tend not to make enemies. A rouge ghoul attack his own kind I could see, but he told us someone else wanted us dead. Which makes Kakuzawa the prime suspect." Kouta explained to him.

"What about those others guys? The CCG?" Bando asked. Kouta smiled at looked away, almost as if he thought Bando was making a joke.

"They don't hire other ghouls to do their dirty work, they'd send their investigators after us if they could track us. Besides..." He turned back to Bando. "If they found out about the old man, they'd send their whole damn army to attack that coffee shop." Everyone else is the room looked both surprised and confused by what Kouta said.

"What do you mean?" Kuro asked.

"Let's just say, he might not seem it but that man is #1 on the CCG's most wanted list." Kouta told them with a grin on his face. Everyone else stared at him silently in disbelief. The old man that they had met seemed more like a caring grandfather figure. No one took him for a dangerous fighter, especially not on that level. Before anyone else could ask further, Kouta stood up from his seat. "Anyways, Lucy and I have plans for today. So we're going out."

"Out?" Kuro asked in an almost accusing tone. "After what happened last night?"

"Don't worry, we'll be sure to stay in populated areas. I doubt Kakuzawa would make such an attempt on us in public." Kouta told him, going over to the coat rack to grab his black sports coat with the stripes. Lucy followed behind and put on her blue hat. She was dressed in khaki pants and a pink sweater to protect her from the chill of late winter. "We'll be back, don't worry." He told Agent Kuro before he and Lucy stepped out the door and left for the town. Kuro sighed as worrying was exactly what he was doing. That attack last night could be no mere coincidence. It had to be Kakuzawa, he somehow found out about them and was now after them. It had just turned into a high stakes game of cat and mouse.

* * *

"Wow, look at that thing!" Lucy pointed in excitement to a camel. Kouta had taken her to a nearby zoo first. It was just like back when they were children and she had the best day of her life. But things were different now. Kouta was no longer human, and his personality had changed drastically. Lucy had to endure years of hardships even after she met Kouta, none more troubling than the memory of her hurting him in the most cruel of ways. She considered herself lucky he forgave her, hopefully now they could move past that and become even closer. She wanted to be more than just friends with him, she wanted to be his and for him to hold her. Today was the closest thing she had come to a real date with him. Even then they never actually said it was a date, thought without the other knowing they both thought of it that way. Kouta had brought her to the zoo in order to try and bring back some happy memories with her. It worked too, both of them felt the nostalgia from their first trip to the zoo. It made them both happy to be back, to be friends once more after so many years apart. Lucy was leaning on the railing by the exhibit and admiring the animals like she did way back then. Back when things were simpler for them.

Kouta was smiling at her from right beside her, happy that he thought to bring her here. "I don't remember seeing this thing last time." Lucy noted.

"Yeah, Kamakura was a smaller town and had a smaller zoo. This one is much bigger." Kouta told her.

"So cool!" She responded with excitement. "What should we go see next?"

"We'll let's see." Kouta pulled out a map. "They seem to arrange the animals here based on their natural habitats. So right now we're in the African section. Looks like the big cats aren't far from here." He folded the map back up and put it in his pocket.

"Well look who it is." They heard a familiar voice call out behind them. They both turned around to see Nishiki approaching. He had someone with him too, a girl that Lucy had not seen before but that Kouta recognized as Kimi.

"Hey Nishiki, Kimi." Kouta greeted the two of them. "What are you guys doing here?"

"Kimi wanted to come to the zoo today, so I brought her here. Didn't expect to run into you guys." Nishiki told him.

"Yeah, Lucy and I decided to see the city on our day off since she's never been to Tokyo before." Kouta informed the other two.

"Well it's nice to see you back here Kouta." Kimi smiled at him. "So you must be Lucy then." Kimi turned to the other girl.

"Hello." Lucy responded.

"Lucy this is Kimi, she's Nishiki's girlfriend." Kouta introduced her.

"I see you two are finally going on a date." Nishiki teased. Both of them turned a little red. "So how about we make it a double date?"

"Oh.. sure, sounds like fun." Kouta responded with a smile. "We were just headed to see the big cats over this way." He pointed behind him with his thumb.

"Sounds like a plan." Nishiki commented. The four of them over to the area that held the African big cats, lions, leopards, and cheetahs. Nishiki and Kimi were walking hand in hand, while Kouta and Lucy stayed close to one another. She thought about grabbing his hand. They did it when they were children, so would it still be ok if she did it now? She wanted to feel his touch, to feel the warmth that came off from him. She wondered if it would be ok with him if she took hold of his hand. She stopped thinking about it when they reached their destination.

"Wow look at it!" She ran over to the stone wall by the lions and admired them. She stared at the one male lion with great interest. It gave small roar which made her awe in amazement. The other three just stared at her from a short distance away.

"I've never seen someone so amazed by a lion." Nishiki commented.

"Ah, yeah... she doesn't go to the zoo much." Kouta replied, rubbing the back of his head.

"Wow, what's this over here?" Lucy ran over too the cheetahs next.

* * *

A short while later, the four of them were sitting at a round picnic table on the outskirts of the zoo. They had decided to stop there to take a quick rest and sit down for awhile. Lucy had gotten a drink at one of the stands, a cup of warm coffee. It was nowhere near as good as the coffee at Anteiku, but she enjoyed it still. She rolled up her sleeves as she sat down at the table too, when she did Kimi noticed something.

"Hey Lucy, what happened to your arm?" Kimi asked the other girl at seeing what looked like a healing cut.

"Kouta and I got jumped yesterday. It's nothing serious." Lucy responded.

"Jumped?" Kimi responded.

"Wait, I thought yesterday all you did was work the night shift." Nishiki asked.

"That's right." Lucy replied. Nishiki suddenly tightened and seemed much more serious. He looked around to make sure there was no one nearby.

"Was it the CCG?" He asked.

"No, some ghoul attacked us behind Anteiku. But Yomo was there and he helped us out." Kouta told him. "But the thing is... he said someone paid him to try and kill us."

"What?" Nishiki was shocked to hear that.

"Do you think it was that guy you're after?" Kimi asked.

"We think so, but we have no way of confirming it. We just have to be more careful from now on." Kouta replied. He then got up from the picnic table. "Excuse me, I have to use the restroom."

"Same here." Nishiki got up as well. "Besides, I want to hear more about what happened." The two boys made their way to a nearby restroom and to discuss last night's events further. Lucy and Kimi were left sitting there at the table alone. There was an awkward silence for a short while before Kimi decided to try and make conversation.

"So how long have you known Kouta?" She asked.

"A long time." Lucy replied.

"Oh, were you childhood friends?" Kimi asked with interest.

"Something like that." Lucy replied solemnly, thinking back to that night all those years ago.

"Huh, what do you mean?" Lucy didn't respond for awhile, taking some time to think of what to say to this new girl.

"We first met as children, and we became friends. But then I did something to him, something unforgivable. We were separated for many years, we met again almost a year ago but we both had lost our memories of back then for different reasons. He's since remembered, as have I. He's forgiven me, but that does not erase what i've done." Kimi looked at this girl with sadness for a moment. She noticed the grief and pain in Lucy's eyes as she stared down at the ground.

"Well if he's forgiven you then it shouldn't matter right?" Kimi responded. "You're not the only one who's hurt the people you love." She lowered her shirt around the collar a bit to show a large scar on her shoulder. Lucy was surprised to see it, it almost looked like a bite mark. "Nishiki did this to me, it was awhile ago. He was really hungry and couldn't control himself. Next thing I know, this happened." She looked down at the scar on her shoulder with a somewhat troubled face.

"You mean... you're human?" Lucy asked, surprised by that just as much as what she had been told. Kimi nodded to her and covered her scar back up.

"I didn't know at first, about him being a ghoul. I didn't find out until this happened." She responded. "I was shocked at first, and I didn't know what to think for awhile. But eventually I figured out what I really want is to be with him. Even though he's a ghoul, I help him out whenever he needs it. Because I still love him, and I forgive him. To us, that's all that matters." She smiled warmly to herself at that last part, thinking back on all the good times they shared. Lucy stared at the other girl in silence, taking in everything she had just been told. Before she could respond, the two boys returned.

"Alright, you guys ready to head out again?" Kouta asked them.

"Sure." Kimi got up from the bench, acting like nothing had happened. Lucy stood up silently and went over to Kouta. The four of them continued on with their day trip to the zoo. As they walked back to the exhibits Lucy looked over to Kouta and thought about Kimi had just said. He kept his eye forward and didn't notice, but she was in deep thought. If he truly forgave her, maybe it would be ok to hold his hand. Maybe it would be ok to let him know her feelings for him. She looked down at his hand and thought about it for a moment. She reached over to him and slowly reached over to touch his hand. He noticed that however, seeing her hand slowly moving towards him. He then looked over to her caught off guard. She stared back in surprise and embarrassment, her face turning bright red. She began to retract her hand and looked forward again. Before she could pull back all the way though, Kouta reached over and grabbed her hand. Her head snapped to him when she felt him do this. He was smiling warmly at her with his eyes closed. She was a little shocked at first, but soon smiled back at him. She moved in a step closer to him as the two of them continued their day walking hand in hand.

Meanwhile as they did this, a security camera followed their group and zoomed in on them.

* * *

Kakuzawa was standing in front of a large screen that had many smaller screens with all sorts of different images on them. Each on of those on his massive monitor was a different security camera somewhere in Tokyo. He had paid a man with special connections to hook up this computer to be able to monitor every single camera in Tokyo. With it he was able to track down his enemies, the group of people who were going to try and stop his dream from becoming a reality. The traitorous agent, the rogue mercenary, the most power silpelit, #7, the old director, the ghoul boy, and of course Lucy. He needed her more than anything. She had to remain alive. He had heard about their little operation through a handful of spies he paid to listen around and try to find out if they were up to anything. He had heard about their little resistance group and about the ghoul cafe that was going to help out. He found it amusing, the idea of ghouls and humans working together like that. He thought that the ghouls would likely try to betray the others later and eat them all. None the less, they were there and he had to deal with them. His vast wealth that he had stockpiled on the island made that job much easier. Money could buy almost anything, especially people. He could pay off people that he had never met before to gather information on the people he was after. In fact to him there were only two things money could not buy him. Lucy, and his assistant.

His assistant had just happen to come back to him at that time too. There were two sets of steps leading up to the raised platform where Kakuzawa was monitoring the activity of his enemies. She took the right one up and took the few steps leading up onto that raised platform. Kakuzawa heard her come but did not turn back. "Look at them, spending their day together at the zoo. It almost touches my heart." He told her rather sarcastically.

"Sir, apologies about last night's failure." Sparrow reported, her mask still on. "I've already acquired free and much more skilled help."

"Have you now? Excellent." He smiled gleefully. "Then I trust you dealt with our old help and informed the clean up crew about his location?"

"Sir, I told them not to worry about it." She replied, he tone emotionless as always.

"You what?" He looked back at her, and sounded rather accusing. She walked over to the keyboard in front of him for his large monitor and tapped a few keys. She brought up a security feed overlooking the spot where she had killed the spiral-tailed ghoul and enlarged it to that it was bigger than the others. The headless body of the ghoul was still there, and there were many people around the body, the area marked off by police tape. Kakuzawa noticed that most of the people around the body had trench coats on, and two of them were carrying suitcases with them.

"I killed that man with my kagune, so there was trace amounts of Rc cells left on the body. Once that was found, the CCG was called in to investigate a ghoul death on the edge of the 20th ward." Kakuzawa grinned evilly.

"So the CCG have become our unwitting pawns in this?"

"Yes. They are much more capable than a rogue ghoul, and if they find any evidence he was after our targets, they'll go looking for them." Sparrow replied.

"Very good Sparrow. Soon both of our dreams will become a reality." He unenhanced the street camera and stared very intently at Lucy with a huge shit eating grin. Sparrow stared at that camera feed too, her eyes fixated instead right on Kouta. She turned around and silently walked away, letting things play out for themselves for now.

* * *

First Class Investigator Koutarou Amon stood over the dead body left there in the alley. He was sitting at his desk filling out paperwork when he got the call that there was a body found just inside the 20th ward with trace amounts of Rc cells. He and his partner Rank 1 Investigator Akira Mado rushed down to the crime scene to look into the case more. The local police had already taped off the alleyway where the body was found. The head was severed and located a meter away from the body. Whatever ghoul did this used their kagune to decapitate this man. What bothered Amon though was that the body wasn't eaten at all. Whoever did this had just left the body there. That was unusual behavior for a ghoul. He expected the head to be eaten or to be at least a few chunks missing. Instead there was a beaten body without a head. Amon didn't like it, something felt off about this case.

His partner Mado felt the same way. She had a gut feeling that there was something deeply troubling about this case. Maybe this person was just killed on accident or saw something they shouldn't have, but she didn't feel that way. She had her father's intuition. Whenever she felt something was off, it usually was. For this, she felt something dark. Whatever this was, it wasn't good and it was going to stay that way. She had a feeling that this would lead into something deeper, but she had to take it. She knelt beside the body and began inspecting the wounds. It looked like he had been in a skirmish before his death, perhaps he tried to pick a fight with a ghoul unknowingly. She also had another thought. She pulled out an empty syringe from her trench coat and injected the needle into the dead man's neck. She filled the syringe up about halfway with blood before pulling it back out. She pulled out a small metal handheld device from her coat and injected the needle into a port on the device made for such a thing. The device in her hands was a portable Rc scanner. It could count Rc cells from a blood test out in the field and determine a ghoul from a human in a matter of seconds. She waited as the two lights blinked back and forth. One was green, one was red. Whichever one lit up, would tell if what she thought was right.

Sure enough, the red light lit up and the machine beeped. It was just as she had expected. "Amon." She called over to her partner.

"You find something?" He asked, looking down at her. She turned her torso to him and showed him the red light on the Rc scanner. He looked shocked to see it.

"Turns out this guy was a ghoul too." She noted.

"Then was this the result a of turf war?" Amon hypothesized.

"No, there would probably the remains of a human if this were a turf war. They usually break out when one ghoul kills a human on another's territory. We only have one body and one set of bloodstains. This is something else, I can just feel it." Amon knew better than to question a Mado's intuition. He had learned that after years of serving with her father and after being partners with her for awhile now. The Amons just had a special gift of intuition. Mado then began to look through the man's belongings, rummaging through the pockets in his pants and jacket. When she reached in his jacket she felt something. She pulled out a slip of paper folded in half and opened it up. Her eyes widened at what she read on it. "You're going to want to see this." She told her partner. She handed him the slip of paper to look at. When he took it and saw it, his heart skipped a beat. There on the paper was two accurate sketches of ghouls in their masks, and the first one was none other than Eyepatch. The sketch was done very well and in color, so Amon noticed it was off that Eyepatch now had white hair. But that mask was definitely him. Underneath was even written 'Eyepatch' and an X next to his name. Under that it read 'Attempt to capture, kill if necessary'. Next to that was a picture of another ghoul that seemed to look female. This one had long pink hair and here eyes were already red, even though there was no black in her eyes. She was wearing a red mask that seemed to have horns on it, giving the implication of being an imp. Under her picture read 'Imp' as well. Her caption was marked 'Capture, do not kill under any circumstances'.

"Is that him?" Mado asked. "Is that the Eyepatch ghoul you've been after?"

"Yeah, it looks like he changed his hair but that's definitely him." Amon responded. "I don't know who this other one is though, this Imp."

"Well whoever she is, she's connected with this case and most likely with Eyepatch. She must be important too if she was to be taken alive." Mado commented. Amon continued to eye up the drawing of Eyepatch. It had been over a year since they met, Amon engaged him in a fight and lost. But even after winning Eyepatch sparred Amon's life, that was also the night his last partner and Akira Mado's father died. Amon never forgot that night, and never forgot the ghoul with the eyepatch. There were so many questions he wanted to ask him. Amon folded the paper back up and put it in his pocket. He and Mado left the scene of the crime together to go report back on their findings.

* * *

"Bye you guys!" Kimi shouted and waved off Kouta and Lucy. The four of them were standing on the sidewalk just outside of the entrance to the zoo. They were heading opposite ways now, Kouta and Lucy were going to return back home to the apartment. Kuro wouldn't be happy if the two of them were out late. She was rather paranoid, but for good reason. Everyone at that apartment is the last chance for humanity, their front and only line of defense. They'd have help from Saseba and Anteiku when the time came, but if they failed the whole plan would come apart. Kakuzawa would have no one to lead an opposition against him, he'd flatten all of humanity and take over the world with his twisted vision. Everything was riding on them, and Agent Kuro was trying to be double sure that nothing would go wrong.

Kouta took Lucy through back alleys as a shortcut to get back to the apartment they all shared. This meant they weren't passing anyone except for when they got to the main roads. Lucy decided to use this time to try and have a one on one with Kouta. "Hey Kouta." She spoke up.

"Hmm?" He looked over to her.

"I had a great time today, thanks for taking me." She gave him a warm smile.

"Of course." He smiled back at her.

"Kouta, after this is all over... will we ever see anyone here again?" Kouta did respond. He instead turned his head forward as he continued to walk, almost as if he did not hear her. "I mean, I do very much wish to see everyone at Maple House again. But i'm starting to grow fond of everyone here too. I'm starting to feel like... i'm going to miss everyone here too."

"Lucy..." Kouta suddenly said right after she had finished speaking. "I wasn't entirely honest with Yuka." Lucy started to feel nervous after hearing that. "I don't know if i'm going to return to Maple Inn."

"What?!" She was shocked. "But Kouta, why?"

"Because..." He began too hang his head just a little. "I don't want Yuka and the others to see me like this." He responded. "I know what that man back at the facility did to me changed me. I can feel it within me too, and I just can't stand to have Yuka and everyone else see me like this now. I would almost rather they never see me again and remember me for who I used to be."

"But what about everyone at Anteiku?" Lucy asked. Kouta was silent for a moment again.

"To be honest, I hate them seeing this me just as much. But I need their help, I at least had to warn them. To be honest, I really don't know what i'm going to do or where i'm going to go when this is all over." He began to stare off in deep thought again.

"And... what about me?" Lucy asked, her voice sounding almost like it did back when she asked about his cousin. She was fearful, afraid because the wrong answer might hurt her. Because it affected what Kouta thought about her. She was scared of what his answer might be.

"Lucy..." He looked over to her, and she could see there was sadness in his eyes. "I already lost you once, I don't want to lose you again. I know it may be selfish but, will you stay with me?" His expression was almost just like hers back then. He was full of sorrow and lost. All he wanted was someone to stay by his side no matter what. Someone who would be close to him no matter what happened.

"Yes." Lucy responding, taking his hand once more. "No matter what you decide, I will be by your side. That's all I ever wanted." She smiled at him, a warm smile of happiness and satisfaction. He smiled back at her the same, neither one letting go of the other's hand.

"Thank you Lucy." They were both happy in this moment. Together they walked holding hands back to their apartment.

* * *

First Class Investigator Amon was currently sitting at his desk in the CCG building in the 20th ward. It had been a month since he took on the case involving Eyepatch and Imp, he still hadn't found any leads since that day. It felt like he hit a brick wall. He had come closer to finally finding Eyepatch but still had a ways to go. Eyepatch had been silent for months, there wasn't any sightings or leads for a long time. Now out of the blue another lead, but it's gone just as quick as it came. There was nothing that could be found from the dead ghoul in the 20th ward. No leads from his death, no kagune to track it back to, just a headless body with a note marking Eyepatch and Imp as targets. There had been no sightings or leads into Imp either, she wasn't even in the CCG's database at the time. It was like chasing down a couple of ghosts. So now he was stuck doing paperwork at his desk. He wanted to get out though, he wanted to find a new lead and finally track down Eyepatch. There were questions he wanted to make Eyepatch answer. That night never left his mind, not only because Eyepatch spared him but because that was the night his old partner Kureo Mado died.

"Whatcha doin'?" Amon heard out of nowhere. He looked down on his right where it came from. He saw Juuzou Suzuya kneeling beside him, looking up at him from below. He startled Amon who slid his chair back in response.

"Gah!"

"Oh, there you are Juuzou." Special Class Investigator Yukinori Shinohara came into Amon's office when he saw Juuzou there. "Sorry about that Amon, he just kinda disappeared on me." Shinohara apologized, rubbing the back of his head.

"Don't you have work to do?" Amon asked Juuzou, turning back to his work.

"No, we haven't been given a case in thee weeks now." Juuzou laid his chin on the desk next to Amon's work. "It's so boring."

"You seem to be rather busy lately Amon." Shinohara noted. "At your desk all day, working till the early hours of the morning. What's got you so overworked?"

"About a month ago I got another lead on Eyepatch." Amon told him.

"What, seriously? After all this time?" Shinohara was surprised.

"Hmm, who's Eyepatch?" Juuzou asked.

"He's a ghoul Amon ran into a year ago. He beat Amon in a fight and sparred him." Shinohara told his subordinate. "But things went dark after that, there were no leads or sightings for months. Why would something come up now?"

"I don't know, but I think it has something to do with the other one." Amon responded.

"Hmm, you mean Rabbit?" Shinohara asked.

"No." Amon opened a drawer and pulled out a piece of paper that was folded in half the long way. He opened it up and placed it on the table for Juuzou and Shinohara to see. "We found this on the dead body of another ghoul. His body was just lying there without it's head. All we know is that that ghoul was killed by another one, and he was after these two."

"Imp? I've never heard of this one before." Shinohara replied, looking down at the paper with the targets marked.

"She wasn't even in our database at the time. All we know of her is that her name is Imp and that's her sketch."

"Wow, Eyepatch has a cool mask." Juuzou admired. "Hey Amon, if you find him can you bring me his mask back?"

"We'll see." Amon responded, trying to put it off. Of course he wasn't going to actually do that. He had to find Eyepatch for his own reasons. Akira Mado then walked into his office too with her grey trench coat on.

"Amon, get your coat on." She instructed him, even though he was her superior.

"Why, what is it?" He asked as he got up from his chair.

"I've got a lead on Imp, we're heading out." Amon's heart almost skipped a beat when he heard that. Finally, a lead. He was now coming close to finally tracking down Eyepatch. He went over to the coat rack by the door and got his trench coat, putting it on and walking out with Mado. "What did you find?" He asked his partner as they made their way for the exit of the CCG building.

"Something from another investigator, she thinks she knows who Imp is. But there's a catch."

"A catch?" Amon asked confused.

"This case just turned into a three-way assignment, she'll be joining us." Mado explained.

* * *

Nozomi stepped out the front door of her house and into the cold night air. She had on a jacket to keep warm, which did help. She began to think that maybe she should have put a scarf on too as it was colder then she expected. She closed the door behind her and locked it. She turned around to walk the small path to the sidewalk, when she saw all her friends waiting there. Well, all her friends currently in Kamakura. The other residents of Maple Inn, Yuka, Mayu, and Anna. Nozomi stayed at Maple House with all of them too. She had just come to check up on how her father was doing. He found out about her trying to get into a music school, and at first scolded her. But she stood up to him for once, and that's when he came clean. He had opposed her singing for so many years because she shared a condition her mother had. Her mother's vocals were dramatically increased beyond what most people could do, but it was a double edged sword. It would eventually destroy her vocal cords and ruin her voice, her singing would only worsen it quicker. Her mother had undergone the same thing and committed suicide not long after. He had tried to prevent her from singing to save her from the same fate. He had been crueler than he first intended though, and had since tried to reconcile with his daughter. She had begun to forgive him and they worked on patching their relationship.

But now she was going to return back to Maple Inn together. Yuka's mother was coming over for dinner tonight and Yuka was going to prepare a special dinner for all of them. Nozomi walked over to her friends and joined them on the walk back to Maple House. "So how'd it go?" Yuka asked her friend.

"Ah, it went well." Nozomi responded. "I think he really does care and truly is trying to make things right."

"Well i'm glad to hear that." Yuka smiled in response to her.

"How about you, are you excited to have dinner with your mother again?" Nozomi asked.

"Yeah, it's been a long time since the two of us sat down for dinner. Even when I lived with her it was uncommon, she was always busy with work." Yuka explained.

"What does your mom do?" Anna asked her.

"Oh, she works for the government up in Tokyo. Just some small office matters." Yuka told her.

"Wow, that's cool senapi." Anna admired. Yuka had took her in as a pupil as well, helping her out with her studies. Anna wasn't very bright, but she did try. Yuka was patient with her though, and did her best to help her out. She did manage to get Anna's grades up though, and she was slowly doing better in school. Anna was very grateful to Yuka for doing that. First she had took her in when she needed a place to stay and now helped her out with her studies.

"Ah, I suppose. She works up in Toyko and sometimes has to stay for awhile but they pay her well. That's how she was able to afford the Maple Inn for Kouta." Kouta. That name brought up a lot of feelings in her. It had been over a month since he left along with Lucy and Nana. The house still felt empty. She thought of them every day, hoping that they would be safe.

It wasn't a long walk home back to Maple House. When they got their they saw the lights inside were already on, meaning Yuka's mother must have gotten there already. She had keys to the residence too being that she was technically the owner. "Oh, looks like mother is here already." Yuka noted when they stepped through the gate. The four current residents walked up to the front door and Yuka slid it open for them. "Hello?!" Yuka called throughout the house. Her mother then stepped into the foyer.

"Ah, you're all home. Sorry to intrude but I got here earlier than I expected." Yuka's mother greeted them. The four young residents left their shoes by the door and stepped into the house.

"It's fine, you are our landlord I suppose." Yuka responded.

"Oh please, don't think of it like that." Her mother chuckled. "I wouldn't expect Kouta or any of you to pay me back for this. Speaking of, how is he doing?"

"Oh... we still haven't heard from him." Her mother could hear the disappointment in her voice. "You know how he is."

"Ah yes, not exactly one for keeping in touch is he?" She smiled back at her daughter trying to brighten her mood.

"Well i'll go get supper ready." Yuka began to make way for the kitchen.

"Oh Yuka, I hope you don't mind but I brought a couple of friends from work to join us tonight."

"Ah, no it's fine mother." Yuka responded. Her mother opened the door to the dining room, where the residents saw two other adults sitting at the table already.

"Everyone, these are my coworkers Koutarou Amon and Akira Mado."


	16. The One-Eyed Owl

Most everyone was gathered around the table at Maple House. Mado was sitting on the end closest to the sliding door outside, Amon was on her right and Yuka's mom, another First Class Investigator, on her left. Nozomi was sitting next to Yuka's mother, and Mayu next to Amon. Anna was next to Mayu on that side while Yuka would be sitting on the end farthest from Mado. However she was currently in the kitchen making dinner. There was an awkward silence in the dining room as they all sat there waiting. No one was really sure what to say. The investigators didn't want to come right out with their real reason for being there, and the kids were not sure what to say to the adults. Even though all but Anna had met Yuka's mother before they rarely saw her. None of them had ever met Mado or Amon before, so they all felt a little nervous. Thankfully it was not long until Yuka came out with dinner. She was carrying two wooden dishes out on a tray and placed them in the middle of the table. "Sorry about the wait, but dinner's ready." She pulled the lid off the two dishes and revealed she had made enough rice for everyone, along with the main course being chicken teriyaki.

"It looks delicious, thank you very much Yuka." Her mother thanked her for the meal. Everyone took a helping of dinner and put it on their plate, passing the dishes of chicken and rice around. Yuka's cooking was just as good too, everyone was enjoying their meal.

"This is very good, your cooking is excellent." Mado thanked her.

"Oh, well thank you very much Mado-san." Yuka thanked her

"Please, just Mado will do."

"What's it like up in Tokyo?" Anna asked.

"Ah, I suppose it's just bigger and more crowded." Mado commented. "But it's home and there's plenty of work to be done."

"What kind of work do you do exactly?" Mayu asked.

"Oh, legal work. Nothing that interesting." Yuka's mother lied.

"I understand there are some residents there aren't here because they're in Toyko right now." Mado asked.

"Yes, my cousin Kouta along with our friends Lucy and Nana." Yuka explained. "My mother originally purchased this house for him to stay while he attended college. But he decided to go back to Toyko for awhile, must have gotten homesick after living there so long."

"I see..." Mado replied, sounding rather intrigued by all this.

"Originally only Kouta was going to stay here, but then they found Lucy and she needed a place to stay. So they let her stay there, and Yuka moved in with them." Nozomi explained."Then one by one we all sort of just found our way here and we've been sort of like a family ever since."

"How long have the others been gone?" Amon asked.

"Over a month now." Yuka answered. "We haven't heard from them since." She began to sound a little disheartened.

"Did you eat like this every night?" Mado asked.

"Yes, it was always something we enjoyed doing together." Yuka replied, sounding back like her normal self now.

"All of you?"

"Mhmm. Why do you ask?"

"Well I imagine the cost of food must have been very high to feed all of you. Perhaps there is someone who wasn't eating as much?"

"No, not at all." Yuka responded, starting to be rather confused by the series of odd questions.

"No one? Not even a little?"

"No, in fact Nana ate almost twice as much as everyone else." Yuke replied a bit defensively. "I'm sorry, but why are you asking?"

"Perhaps I should stop with the third degree." Mado told her, crossing her fingers and placing her elbows on the table. "You see, the department we work for is known as the CCG, the Commission of Counter Ghoul." The residents of Maple House and felt a jolt of fear when Mado came out with that. Did they find out about Kouta? "And we have reason to believe that you've been harboring a ghoul." That scared them even more. The three investigators could see it too, these teenagers were definitely hiding something.

"I'm sorry, i've never heard of a 'ghoul' before." Yuke replied, putting on a straight face.

"It's not wise to lie to us you know." Mado responded. "Helping a ghoul is a worse offense than helping a criminal, even punishable by death." The three adults could see nervousness again. "Your expressions are giving it away too, you seem to be getting more and more nervous. Meaning you're hiding something."

"Normally we'd drag you down to the CCG in the 20th ward, but since your mother is an investigator we'll let you kids off the hook if you come clean." Amon informed them, his tone full of seriousness. He was not intending to play games with these children. He was finally close to finding Eyepatch, he could feel it.

"What evidence do you have?" Yuka asked. Mado smiled, realizing that this girl was finally starting to crack. She pulled out the note they found on the dead ghoul and opened it up. He showed it to Yuka, but keeping her fingers over Eyepatch's picture and name, so to just show them Imp's portrait. She could tell that Yuka recognized it too when she saw it.

"We found this on a dead ghoul about a month ago. Your mother remembers that there was a girl with horns living her who looks oddly similar to this one. So tell us, she's a ghoul isn't she?" Yuka was silent, staring in disbelief at Mado. She couldn't believe this was happening. There were people after her friends again, people that were going to hunt them down. It was just like before with Lucy, except this time her mother was in on it.

"Yuka..." Her mother spoke up and got her attention. "Please, just tell us the truth and I promise nothing will happen to any of you." Her mother spoke gently. She was trying to comfort her daughter in all of this and get her to confess. They knew that these kids knew something, there was no hiding that. Now they had had to get the truth out of them, and out it would come. One way or another.

Yuka lowered her head for a moment. "No..." She spoke softly, but was still heard. "No, Lucy isn't the ghoul here. Maybe she got involved with them but she isn't..." She thought about what would happen when she told them. Would her mother still protect Kouta? She had to didn't she? They were family after all. Her mother even promised no one would be harmed. "Kouta is." That caught the three investigator off guard, they each gave her surprised looks.

"Yuka, I think I would know if my own nephew was a ghoul." Her mother responded to her.

"No, it's true!" Yuka shot out. "Well... he's half-ghoul anyway."

"There's no such thing." Mado told her. "Ghouls and humans can't reproduce. How could he be a half-ghoul?"

"It was almost two years ago..." Yuka began to think about how much that day changed everything for him. "Kouta was living in Tokyo when he got into a pretty serious accident."

"You mean the one at the construction site?" Her mother asked. "I remember that, what about it?"

"That girl that Kouta was with, she was a ghoul. She attacked him and that's why he was injured. Then the doctor used her organs to give him a transplant and he became a ghoul from that." There was a collective gasp from the three adults at the other end. This was something they had never heard of or seen before.

"A human that was turned into a ghoul?" Amon asked astonished.

"Yes, we've seen it. Only one of his eyes transforms too." Amon's eyes widened when he heard that.

"Which one?" He asked.

"Huh?"

"You said only one eye transforms, which one?" Amon repeated, a bit of ferocity in his voice.

"Th-the left one." Yuka responded a bit fearful from his sudden outburst. The gears in Amon's head began to turn and he gritted his teeth.

"Amon, are you thinking what i'm thinking?" Mado asked, moving her gaze over to her partner.

"Yeah..." Was all he could respond with. Mado showed Yuka the paper once more, this time covering up Lucy's picture instead.

"Is this him?" Mado could tell as soon as Yuka looked at it that it was. Her eyes widened in surprise, and she knew that was Kouta. Even with the mask on she knew it was him, especially with the white hair.

"Yes." Yuka responded quietly and nodded. "That's him."

"So we've finally found him... Eyepatch." Amon was at a loss of words in this moment. He had spent over a year trying to track Eyepatch down and now finally did. He finally knew Eyepatch's true identity, and he would make him give some answers.

"Yuka, how long have you known about this?" Yuka's mother asked her.

"It was 8 months ago." Mayu answered. She pulled the sleeve down on her right arm and the scar that was left there was revealed. "When this happened."

"He bit you?" Yuka's mother asked in surprise. "Why did you keep this to yourselves?" She asked in disbelief.

"Because, Kouta's always been sort of like a father to us." Mayu replied as she rolled her sleeve back up. "He took me in when I had no place to go, even went through the trouble of adopting me. He took all of us in when we needed it and gave us food and a place to live. He's always been a caring person, so none of us could bring ourselves to betray him like that. Not after all he's done for us."

"Mother... what's going to happen to Kouta?" Yuka asked. Her mother was silent for a moment.

"If he's begun displaying ghoulish tendencies, he'll have to be judged as such. We'll deal with him the same way we deal with all ghouls." Her mother informed her.

"What?! Mother, you can't!" Yuka protested. "He's still our family, you can't kill him!"

"He's a ghoul now Yuka, and we have to treat him as such." Her mother told her.

"But... why? He hasn't done anything wrong, he didn't ask for this." Yuka was starting to cry.

"It doesn't matter if he wanted this or not, he has to be dealt with. Nothing can change that." Mado told the frantic young girl. "You of all people i'd expect to understand this?"

"Wh-what?" Yuka choked out through tears.

"After what happened to you you must have-"

"Akira." Yuka's mother suddenly cut her off. "All of you, I ask that you please leave me alone to talk with my daughter for a moment." Mado was silent for a moment before answering, giving her co-worker a rather surprised look.

"Very well Kiyoko." She stood up. "Amon, let's give them a moment." Her partner and teacher got up from the table and the two of them headed for the front door. The residents of the house departed and scatter to their respective rooms, confused but decided not to ask.

"What was that about?" Amon asked his partner after they entered the foyer. Both of them began to put their shoes back on.

"I think it means Kiyoko never told her daughter the truth." Mado replied.

It was silent back in the dining room. Yuka and her mother sat there quietly for a few moments, neither sure of what to say to the either. "Mother... what's going on?" Yuka finally managed to ask.

"Yuka..." Her mother began. "I have been keep something from you, and I think it's time you learn the truth."

"The truth? What are you talking about?" Yuka was starting to feel rather concerned.

"The truth about how your father really died." Her mother told her from across the table. "Your father wasn't killed in a car crash, he was murdered." That word rang through Yuka like a sour note. It shook her to the very core. "By a ghoul, known as the One-Eyed Owl."

* * *

On that day many years ago...

Yuka's father and Kouta's mother were driving in a car together through the countryside. They were going back to Kakamura from a more southern region after visiting their sick aunt. She had always been kind to them as children and throughout their lives, she always gave the best gifts to them as kids too. But she was diagnosed with lymphoma. The doctors told her they found it early enough to save her life, but she would have to go through chemotherapy and all the treatment. She was recovering in the hospital when a large group of their family surprised her with a visit and a wave of get well wishes. She was happy to see them all too, and it certainly brightened her mood. It was a bit of a drive for the two siblings on their way back now. When they got back Kouta's family would stay for the night before departing for their home in Hokkaido the next morning. The sun was starting to go down as they were about half way back on the return journey. "Thanks again for letting us stay at your place for the night." Kouta's mother showed her gratitude to her brother. She was a fair and beautiful woman with black hair that flowed down to her back.

"Ah, don't worry about it. You are family after all." He responded. He had short brown hair that was ruffled up, and a strong jawline. He was also fairly bulky, all those years with the CCG began to really build his muscles. "I was glad we could go and see her, it really meant a lot to her."

"Yeah, she was pretty bummed out that she couldn't come to see your promotion to Special Class Investigator."

"Ah, yeah it was sad not seeing her there. But it was still a good day." He commented. "So how's Kouta doing, I haven't seen the little guy in forever."

"Ah, yes our little Kouta just turned 4 a few weeks ago." She smiled at her brother.

"Him and Yuka both now. It's funny, it really is true when they say that they grow up so fast."

"By the way, what are you going to tell Yuka about your job?" He looked over at his sister when she asked, but then quickly had to look back at the road in order to drive. "One day she's going to get older, are you going to tell her about what you really do? About ghouls?" He was silent for a moment, he had never really thought of that before.

"I don't know." He responded. "The CCG wants our work to stay underground and for the word about ghouls not to get out. But a lot of investigators have at least warned their families. But how are you supposed to tell your daughter that there are monsters out there that look like people and eat them? That they hide among us as humans, but that they're actually hunters out to kill people. I really don't know what we're going to tell Yuka, but that day won't be until a long time from now."

"Yeah..." Kouta's mother stared off blankly. "Boy, when I think about him hitting puberty."

"'Ay, you aren't allowed to say that word." He cut in. "Not till they're at least 13."

"All right, as you wish." She replied laughing a bit." But do you think-" She was suddenly cut off when something hit the side of the car. Neither one of them saw it when it happened, but something flew into the passenger side of the car and hit hard. The impact made both of them blackout instantly. It was one second they were having a nice family conversation, then the next a loud thud and glass went flying. While they were temporarily out, the front end of the car was knocked off due to the car began to spin. It did a total 360 off course before skidding to a stop off road. The back door on the passenger side hit a tree, which cause it to stop spinning. A few moments after it was all over, Yuka's father began to come back too. He looked around with his vision blurred to see the car was no longer on the road and the windshield was cracked. It was a long crack that ran the length of the windshield, beginning on the side that was hit with several other branch cracks splitting off. He was bleeding too, it wasn't bad but he could feel blood trickling down on the right side of his head. He looked over to the left to see how his sister was doing. What he saw horrified him. His sister was bleeding profusely. There was blood all long her abdomen and she was clutching her left side. His jaw dropped in horror when he saw his sister's condition. He opened up the door and got out of the car as quick as he could. He ran around the hood and got over to her door.

"Don't move, i'll help you out!" He instructed her. He opened her door and unbuckled her seat belt. He was again shocked when he saw the wound in her side. There was a large gaping hole in her left side, and when he looked back down at the door there was a hole about the same size. It appeared that whatever hit them punctured through the door and into her side. He pulled her out as gently as he could and laid her on the ground. "Oh god, we need to stop the bleeding." He stated frantically. He took of his trench coat in order to use it to wrap up her wound.

"Hideki..." She spoke weakly. "I feel cold."

"What?!" He responded with fear. "No, please sis stay with me." Be begged her. Her eyes were wide and blank as she stared up at the sky breathing heavily. Her breathing was heavy and rapid. She turned her head and took one last look at the sunset.

"The sunset sure is pretty." She smiled.

"Sis!" Her brother said panicking. She took too more heavy breaths, this time more spaced out before she closed her eyes. When she did her breathing stopped all together and she bled out there on the side of the road. Hideki had tears in his eyes as he watched his sister die right there in front of him. He had known her his whole life, and now she was gone. In the blink of an eye, his only sister died before him. He couldn't contain himself. The tears streamed down his face as he knelt there beside her. He placed his trench coat over her to cover up her body. Blood still poured from her wound and puddle on the ground beside her. Hidek stood up, tears still in his eyes as he looked down in grief at the body of his sister. Earleir today there were all together with the rest of the family and now she was gone. He could never get her back. He gathered himself up as much as he could and wiped the tears from his face. He pulled out a small flip phone and dialed a number. He held it up to his ear and the phone rang three times before the person he was calling answered.

"Hello?" Shinohara answered.

"Yukinori, it's Hideki." He replied.

"Hey, there's the Special Class Investigator. How'd the visit go?" The at the time, Associate Special Class Investigator asked.

"Yukinori, that favor you owe me... I need to call it in." Hideki told him, the sadness could be heard in his voice.

"Huh, Hideki what happened? Is something wrong?" Shinohara asked in concern.

"We were... in a car crash on the way back. My sister is dead, we need assistance."

"Oh... i'm sorry to hear that." Shinohara showed his respects. "Give me a moment to zero in your location." Hideki didn't respond. He just stared down blankly at his coat, currently covering up the lifeless body of his sister. He was deeply troubled, how did things turn out like this? He didn't even see anything coming, he still had no clue what happened. That's when he found out. He noticed a figure up the road. It was a man dressed in a large black overcoat with a black rimmed hat. He also had a mask on, and his right eye was the eye of a ghoul. The Special Class Investigator knew who this was all to well. The One-Eyed Owl, the ghoul that had taken down the CCG branch of the 2nd ward by himself. The CCG's public enemy #1. Hideki glared at the owl when he came to realize that he was the one who caused this whole ordeal. He attacked them and hit their car, and he killed Hideki's sister. "All right, i've got your location." Hideki looked surprised to hear Shinohara, almost as if he had forgotten he was on the phone. "It'll be about 30 minutes till we can get to you."

"Yukinori... I have to go now." Hideki told the other investigator, his voice now more serious and stern.

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"It's him... The Owl. He caused the crash. I have to go now."

"What?! Hideki, you can't!" Shinohara pleaded.

"Tell my wife that I love her very much." He smield at bit as he thought about his wife and kid back home.

"Are you crazy? He'll kill you! Wait for backup, we'll-" Hideki cut him off and close the phone. He tossed it to the ground as he was no longer going to need it. "You..." He glared at the owl who was standing there down the street. "You caused this, this is all your fault." He trued around and went back to the car. He went to the trunk and popped it open. He reached right for what he needed and closed the trunk. He stepped to the middle of the street to face the owl, who was waiting for him. Hideki stood there ready for a showdown with the owl. He pulled off his red tie and threw it to the ground, also undoing the top button of his light blue dress shirt. "I'll make you pay." He opened up the suitcase he got from the trunk with a click. He set it on the ground and pulled his quinque out of the case. They were two sword handles in there with hand guards. But when he opened them his full ukaku type quinque emerged. Creating two sets of rapier swords in his hands. They were shini &amp; gami, two of the most lethal quinques ever made.

"I'll make sure to drag you down to hell with me!" He told the owl with fierceness. "Now come and meet your fate. Face me demon owl, hell spawn of the night." He raised the sword in his left hand so that it was facing straight up and right in the center of his face. He stared down the One-Eyed Owl with both anger and focus. He was going to make this demon pay, no matter what. The One-Eyed Owl released his own kagune, two white lances around the shoulders. He made the first move. The Owl made a straight forward attack for the investigator's head. Hideki simply titled his head out of the way and slashed across with the sword he was holding in front of his face. The Owl stopped a few meter behind Hideki, who now had both of his blades pointed to his sides and tilted down slightly. Blood gushed out of the Owl's left side around stomach level. He was unphased by this however and simply turned around to face the investigator again. Hideki turned to his left with that side now facing towards the ghoul.

"Come now, you didn't think something like that would work on me. I earned the title of Special Class for a reason." He mocked. The Owl took him seriously this time, he swiped sideways with his right lance, followed by spinning and an attack with his left, then a full 360 and a second attack with the right. The Investigator raised his right arm above his head and held the blade down, with the left sword pointed up. He used this to block all three attacks. After he blocked the third attack he sent a swift kick into the stomach of the owl. The owl stumbled back a step from the force of his kick. However in a flash the owl was back on the investigator. He attacked this time with rapid jabs, left, right, left, right. Hideki was easily able to block them though. He blocked the right attacks with his left sword, and the right jabs with his left sword. He was easily able to keep up with his experience and the lightweight of his ukaku quinque. After several blocked attacks, the owl pulled back hard on the left kagune to try and power attack Hideki. Hideki threw up his swords in a blocking motion, waiting for the attack. When the owl was close enough, he used that as a farce and swept low with the right kagune. Hideki jumped to avoid the low sing and spun his body around. He delivered a powerful 360 kick aimed for the head of the ghoul. The One-Eyed Owl ducked however and the kick missed. With the owl ducking and moving forward, they both ended up back to back. Hideki had the blade in his right hand low and spun to his left, in order to strike up on the owl. This time the owl was quicker however.

The One-Eyed Owl spun around quicker and preformed his own upper strike. His cut straight thought the right arm of Yuka's father. It was severed and went flying straight up with a gush of blood. "Gah!" Hideki screamed in pain as he right arm was cut off.

"_Ahahahahaha!_" The ghoul mocked with a sinister laugh. Hideki wasn't finished yet though. As the arm his the apex of its flight up the muscles released the sword. Hideki caught the handle in his mouth on the way down. He came back at the ghoul with the same ferocity, even without his right arm. He had the blade of the sword in his mouth pointed to the left. He began wit ha downsward strike, which the owl stepped back and away from. Then he spun around and did a 360 spin and slash with the sword in his mouth. When the owl moved a step back from that the investigator spun even more and attempted a sweep kick with his right heel. The owl jumped up and backwards, going into the air. When Hideki was facing him again he lunged after him mid air. Hideki spun through the air sideways, making multiple circular slashes with his sword. He and the owl clashed mid air, the owl blocked the slashes from his left hand. Hideki then slashed upwards with the sword in his mouth. The owl blocked this with the other kagune and they both fell back down to the earth. Hideki managed to land on his feet about 2 meter away from the ghoul. He began to pant. _This isn't good._ He thought to himself. _I'm losing a lot of blood. Better end this quick._

Hideki ran right for the ghoul, his left sword making contact with the ground as he rushed in, sending sparks flying. When he got in close he slashed up at a diagonal angle at the ghoul. He then slashed back downwards at the same angel which the owl this time blocked the attack. Hideki took a half step back and lunged in, this time with a straight jab right for the ghoul's torso. The owl made his own move. He side-stepped the jab and went in with his own. His kagune pierced Hideki's left lung and just missed his heart. Hideki spat blood out when it happened and the lance stabbed all the way through him. Hideki gritted his teeth again and pushed himself down ever further on the lance. _Now!_ Went through his mind as he went for the finishing move. He aimed the sword in his left hand for the ghouls heart and went in for the kill. He ran the ghoul through as his swords pierced the One-Eyed Owl's heart and brain at the same time. The sword in left hand hit it's mark and went straight the the heart. The one in his mouth went into the ghoul's left eye, or where it should have been, and went straight through his head. "Damn, I hit the wrong eye." Hideki commented with the sword still in his mouth. At least it was over though, he had taken the demon down with him just like he said. Or so he thought.

The owl turned its head and stared Hideki straight in the eye. Hideki's eyes widened when he saw that. The owl was somehow still alive. Even with a sword in its heart and brain. The owl pulled its kagune straight up and ripped right through Hideki. Blood splattered everywhere through the large gash in Hideki. The sword dropped from his mouth and he lost his grip on the one in his only hand. _Kiyoko... forgive me._ Those were the last words that went trough his mind. He was dead when he hit the ground. The owl pulled the two swords out from its body and threw them to the ground. The One-Eyed Owl stood there silently, watching over the scene of death on the road. Two bodies now lie there, a former Special Class Investigator and his sister.

Later that night, Yuka's mother Kiyoko and Kouta's father were up late waiting for the two of them to return. It wasn't even a full hour into the next day and Kouta and Yuka were put to bed hours ago. Now the two adults were waiting shortly after midnight for their family to return before heading off to bed. They were growing impatient too, those two were supposed to be home hours ago. Kiyoko had made some tea not longer ago for her and her brother-in-law while they waited. He looked down at his watch. "Where are they? They should have been here hours ago." He asked impatiently. Kiyoko stared down at her phone and sighed.

"He's not answering me either, what in the world did those two get into?" Just then the door bell to the residence rang. "Ah, that must be them." She got up from the table. Kouta's father followed behind her as the two of them made way for the door. Yuka's mother opened it, but they did not find who the expected it to be at the door. Instead it was two gentlemen, one in a black suit, the other in a gray trench coat. Kouta's father did not recognize either of these men but Kiyoko did. It was Kureo Mado and Yukinori Shinohara.

"Oh, First Class Mado, Associate Special Class Shinohara." She greeted them in surprise. "What brings you here at this hour?" Both of them had grimace looks on their faces and were avoiding her gaze. Mado handed her the suitcase he had in his hands. She took it confused, thinking that it was was his quinque. But much to her surprise, when she opened it up she found her husband's quinque inside. "What... what is this?" She asked confused and afraid.

"I'm sorry but... your husband and his sister were ambushed on the way back here. It was the owl... there were no survivors." Shinohara informed them with a grave and solace tone. That hit them like a ton of bricks. Both of them stared at the investigators shocked and bewildered.

"Then... my wife..." Kouta's father couldn't find the words he needed.

"I'm sorry sir, but your wife was killed as well. The CCG currently has her body, we'll make sure it's buried wherever you request." Shinohara responded. Kiyoko fell to her knees and clutched the suitcase close to her chest.

"And... and my husband?" She asked tearfully. Shinohara and Mado stared down at her with pitiful looks. They both felt bad for her and her loss.

"There was nothing left to bury." This shocked her even more. She gasped in horror as tears streamed from her eyes. She couldn't hold the pain back anymore. She began to violently sob against the cold steel suitcase. Her husband had just been taken from her, and there wasn't even a body left to bury. She couldn't deal with the pain. She had worked as a bureau investigator for years after her husband graduated from the academy. She had done plenty of paperwork about this kind of thing and knew it all too well. But this was far too close. She was now left widowed and a single mother. What would she tell Yuka?" Mado then looked passed her and gasped a little. Shinohara saw it and did the same thing. The two adults in the house both turned their heads to look back and see 4 year olds Yuka and Kouta standing there in the entrance to the foyer. They were both very young and confused.

"Mommy, what's happening?" Little Yuka asked. Kouta's father went over to them.

"It's nothing. Back to bed both of you. We have to get up early tomorrow." He took them back to their rooms to put them back to bed. Kiyoko could not bring herself to get back up and just continued to kneel there crying frantically. Shinohara and Mado both watched this scene unfold with a great sadness in their hearts. The scene of a family senselessly torn apart.

* * *

Back in the present day, Yuka was staring at her mother in horror of what she had just been told. Her mother had just finished explaining the night the two investigators came over and told her about her husband's death. Yuka had just been told the truth about how her father really died. "After that I transferred over and became a Ghoul Investigator. I worked my way up so that now I am a First Class Investigator. Your father though was a Special Class Investigator, the highest rank there is besides executive positions." Kiyoko finished explaining her story. Yuka was speechless. She had been told a lie for most of her life. She had gone on believing her father died in a car crash and was totally unaware of the existence of ghouls. Her mother then began to get up from the table. "Welp, I think i've spent enough time here. I'm sorry for having deceived you for long Yuka. I just thought it would be easier if you didn't know the truth." She tried to avoid looking at her daughter in shame. But her face still serious from the thought of Kouta now being a ghoul.

"Mother..." Yuka spoke softly. "Please... don't kill Kouta." She pleaded gently. Her mother still avoided her gaze.

"I'm sorry Yuka, but I have no other choice."

"But... you can't." She protested weakly. Kiyoko sighed.

"You're going to try and see him aren't you?" She asked her daughter.

"Wh-what?" Yuka responded at a normal tone. "No."

"Yuka." This time she looked down at her daughter. "I think I know my own daughter better than that. I should warn you that it's dangerous... but I also know you better." She pulled out a gun and laid it on the table. She slid it over to Yuka and it landed next to her plate. She looked down to see a small Beretta PX4 pistol on the table.

"Mother! Is this a gun?" Yuka asked shocked.

"Yes, and it's loaded with Q bullets. Our special ammo that can damage ghouls. Take it with you, and I don't know a thing about it." Before Yuka could say any more on the matter her mother turned around and walked out of the room. She headed for the front of the house, put her shoes on, and exited the house. Her two coworkers were still out front waiting for her.

"So how'd it go?" Mado asked. Kiyoko just shot her a look that Mado instantly picked up on as to not ask.

"We need to move. Let's track Kouta down and get ready to confront him. We've got a ghoul to catch." She instructed her two partners in this case. The three investigators headed for the train station to get back to Tokyo and wrap this case up. Meanwhile Yuka found a nice green coat and hid the gun her mother gave her inside. She was right, Yuka was going to go to Tokyo and warn Kouta. She went to explain it to the other residents before heading out and taking the second train headed for Tokyo. She knew right where to go to, straight for Anteiku.


	17. Kakuja

"Ah, it looks great!" Lucy admired in the handheld mirror.

"I'm glad you like it." Kouta replied as he stood behind her. He had just finished cutting her hair and still had the scissors in his hands. It was now cut to a medium length right above her shoulders. Like she used to have it when she was younger. The research institute didn't give haircuts though, so she got used to it growing out long. But Kouta offered to cut it for her, and he did a good job at doing so. "I learned how to do that after I started living on my own. It was much cheaper that way."

"You did a great job. Thank you Kouta." She held the mirror on her lap now and smiled to him. He smiled down at her. Nana was watching it all unfold from the couch. To her, this little apartment and everyone in it felt like a second home to her. They might have been a little mismatched jumble of people, but they felt like family to her. She was starting to grow accustom to this little place in Tokyo. The city looked so pretty too, she wished to go out and visit it sometime like Kouta and Lucy once did. She was starting to think of them as a couple now too. They were close both figuratively and literally. Lucy usually didn't stray too far away from him unless she had to. She strangely felt comforted being close to him. He reminded her of a better time, and he knew what it was like to be out of place in this world. The two of them had grown only closer since they came to Tokyo, even with the fact of what she had done. She had slowly begun to come out of her shell too. After working with everyone at Anteiku Lucy was finally starting to accept other people. To her they were like a big family too. All of them with troubled pasts of their own. They took her in and showed her their way of life, even after they found out she was responsible for the deaths of Kouta's sister and father. After having such an influx of caring people she had finally begun to open up and stop assuming the worst in everybody. She was still very weary of other people, but her coldness to them seemed to have almost vanished.

Kouta went over to his backpack resting on the other side of the couch. Lucy was on a small folding chair behind the short part of the L-shaped couch. There was a towel on the ground to catch her hair. Kouta leaned down to his backpack resting on the end of the long part of the couch. "Man, i'm so bored." Bando commented from the kitchen, a can of beer in his hands. "How much longer until I can get out there and fight already?"

"Four months." Agent Kuro responded. She was reading a book across the living room, leaning on the wall next to the hallway to the bedrooms and bathroom.

"Gah!" Bando shouted back in frustration. "Man these two at least get out for a job. Maybe I should start looking for some work."

"Bando, maybe you should work for the Yakuza as a hit man." Kouta responded sarcastically.

"Heh, you know that doesn't sound like a bad idea." He replied with a smile. Kouta chuckled a bit at that. He was about to close his pack back up when he heard something. His heightened ghoul senses picked up on something and his eyes widened. He looked over to Lucy who was now standing up and admiring her new haircut in the mirror.

"Lucy!" He called over to her. She looked over to him suddenly, surprised to hear him call out her name. Kuro was also surprised and looked over the top of her book to him. Kouta tossed Lucy her mask across the room like a frisbee. She was surprised he did that but still caught it a couple feet in front of her with one of her vectors. Before she had time to ask why he did that there was an explosion. The front door to their apartment was breached and there was a loud bang as it splintered into pieces. Lucy quickly put on her mask, and Kouta did the same after he got his own out of the backpack. Kuro got off the wall and dropped her book, pulling out a Springfield XDM in .40 S&amp;W. Bando jumped over the kitchen counter into the living room and pulled out an Uzi from behind the couch. He aimed it with one hand at the doorway. Kurama and Mariko were also in the kitchen at the time. Kurama rushed in and aimed a Sig P226 at the door. Mariko got more towards the middle so that whoever was attacking would be in her range. They watched as a group of soldiers dressed in combat gear entered and blocked the exit. They all aimed automatic M4 rifles at the residents there. The residents as CCG investigators stood there in a standoff.

* * *

It was a slow day at Anteiku. There were very few customers throughout the day so far. Kouta and Lucy had been given the day off while the rest of the employees worked the day shift. There was currently no one else in the store aside from the employees. Enji and Yoshimura were currently both behind he counter. Enji was leaning on the counter near the register looking bored while Yoshimura was cleaning a cup. The other employees were all scattered around the floor looking and feelings bored. A slow day with not much to do but sit around. They all looked to the door when they heard the bell chime, hoping for something to do. However it was not a customer but Yomo who walked into Anteiku. "Ah, Yomo, what brings you here?" Enji greeted him as he walked in the door, lifting his head up. Yomo didn't respond of even mind him any intention. Instead he simply walked over to Yoshimura behind the counted and whispered something in his ear. Yoshimura frowned.

"I see..." He placed the cup back where it belonged. Yomo stepped aside and let Yoshimura step out from behind the counter. "Enji, something's come to my attention that I need to take care of. Please watch over the shop for me until I return."

"Is everything ok?" Enji asked a bit concerned.

"It will be soon. Also, Kouta and Lucy are going to be arriving here soon. I'll be back with them later." He then headed for the back exit, taking his black cloak and rimmed hat before departing from the small coffee shop in the 20th ward.

* * *

Back at the apartment, there was currently a standoff between the 7 residents living there and the group of CCG soldiers. There were guns aimed and Kouta and Lucy both adorned their masks and glared at the investigators. An intense silence filled the room. Tension was high as each side waited for the other to make the first move. "Great, so now what?" Kouta commented of the situation. Someone else entered the room dressed up in CCG combat gear. It was First Class Amon, with his quinque's case in his hands. When he stepped in front of the soldiers he instantly noticed Kouta standing there with his mask on. Kouta recognized him too and the two of them stared wordlessly at each other for a moment. "Oh, it's you..." Kouta finally noted.

"Eyepatch..." Amon responded to him.

"Congratulations detective, you finally found me."

"You were slippery, but we finally managed to track you down." Kouta heard a female voice say behind Amon. Kouta looked behind him to see a woman with short blonde hair come to his side. She was also dressed in full combat gear and carried her own suitcase. That was his partner Akira Mado.

"Well allow me to be the first to congratulate on you on a job well done detectives." Kouta replied sarcastically.

"That's First Class Mado and First Class Amon to you... Kouta." The residents all gasped a little when Mado said that. Kouta went wide eyed in surprised then quickly went back to glaring at her. He unfastened the straps on the back of his mask and removed it. This was the first time Amon had seen Kouta's true face, and the first time Mado was meeting him. "And you must be Lucy." Mado smiled half-heatedly at her. Lucy gritted her teeth in anger. She too removed her mask and let it clatter to the floor.

"So, you've even managed to uncover our identities it seems. I have to ask, how'd you do it?" Kouta inquired.

"They had a little help." He heard another female voice call out. A third investigator joined Amon and Mado, this one Kouta and Lucy recognized as did Nana.

"Aunt Kiyoko." Kouta regarded her coldly. "So you're an investigator too huh?"

"A First Class Investigator." She gloated. "But to answer your question, we found out about Lucy running with ghouls. I recognized the hair and horns, even with the mask on. After that we confronted your friends and they told us everything."

"Did you hurt them?" Kouta asked in an aggressive voice almost immediately after she told him that.

"No, they gave us the information they knew in exchange for their safety." Kiyoko explained.

"Good." Kouta took a step forward. All of the soldiers with rifles in their hands tensed. "Now I won't have to break as many of your bones." Kiyoko looked a little surprised to hear Kouta say that.

"I see you've taken to your ghoul side." She commented.

"Eyepatch!" Amon called to him. "There's something i've been need to ask you. Why did you let me live back then?" Kouta stared at him silent for a moment.

"Things were different back then." Kouta explained. "Back then I thought I could continue on without having to kill people. I was a fool to think such a thing. So long as people like the CCG exist there has to be bloodshed."

"Like my father?" Mado asked. "Tell me, do you remember my father, First Class Kureo Mado?" Kouta now stared at her instead. "He was killed the night you spared Amon's life. Which we imagine must have been a friend of yours, rabbit. How do you justify that?"

"Your father tried killing my friend with her parent's kagunes, he was a sick man who deserved to die." Kouta told her without any emotion or remorse. Amon and Mado both shot him furious looks after he said that.

"There doesn't have to be today." Kiyoko cut in before anything happened. "IF you come along quietly I can promise you that you'll live. We'll make sure there's a spot for you in the ghoul detention center where you won't have to kill anyone." Kouta laughed halfheartedly at that. As if it was intended as a joke.

"Sorry, but..." Kouta suddenly grabbed the bottom of his plain black t-shirt and pulled it off. Everyone was shocked at what they saw. All across Kouta's muscular build was scars running all across his body. Even though his wounds from the Diclonius Research Institute had healed, there were scars all along his body in random patterns. The two thickest ones were from when the doctor skinned Kouta. Right above where his t-shirt covered up. "I already know from experience what happens when humans lock up someone who's not." He put his shirt back on and covered up his scars. Lucy tried to avoid looking at him. It pained her to see them, knowing that they were partially her fault. They were a testimony to the pain that she had caused him.

"I see... so there's no way out of this?" Kiyoko asked stoically.

"It can't be helped." Kouta replied, his left eye then turning black. "You're in my way."

"It's just like they said, only one." Amon noted. Mado took a step to the side.

"How about now?" She mused. Kouta just stared at her unamused

"Cute." He commented. Kiyoko took a step forward in front of the two other investigators.

"I'll handle this." She told the other two. "Hold your fire men." She clicked open her suitcase. She pulled out what looked like a rather large sword hilt, and when it came out a large blade extended outwards from it. She was now holding a quinque in her hand that looked just like a two-handed greatsword. "You're no match for me and Brynhildr." She held the hilt of the sword above her head and having the blade facing straight downwards. Kouta unleashed his four rinkaku that swayed about behind him.

"She's in for quite a fight, he's got the advantage here." Amon commented to his partner.

"Even so, Kiyoko is tough. She won't go down easy." Mado replied. Kiyoko and the residents of the apartment stood there ready to battle. This battle would affect the fate of humanity. For if the seven of them lost, there would be no one to stop Kakuzawa from unleashing a war against all of humanity. He would destroy the world and wipe out everyone, only to replace them with Diclonius that could not reproduce. He had to be stopped, they could not lose here. Before anyone could make the first move however, there was another explosion behind the residents. Something crashed right through the outside wall and landed in the living room between them and the investigators. Dust filled the room and it was hard to see what had just happened. Even with sunlight pouring into the room. Kouta had to look away when the debris went flying, but he could smell who ti was that had come. Kouta looked over to the figure shrouded in dust and debris.

"Nice of you to show up." He greeted.

* * *

Yuka was now standing outside of the small coffee shop in the 20th Ward of Tokyo. After she arrived in Tokyo that morning she instantly began trying to find Anteiku. She had no clue where Kouta was staying at the time so she decided to head there first. They had asked around but not many of the locals had heard of the place. It didn't seem to really exist outside of the 20th Ward. But she eventually found someone who knew about the place and pointed her in the right direction. After some walking she eventually arrived in front of the humble coffee shop. _This is the place._ She thought to herself as she stood outside the front door. She reached for the handle and opened up the front door, feeling nervous all the while. When she stepped inside she noticed the place was empty. The atmosphere from the room seemed rather warm and inviting and helped calm Yuka down. The employees all looked over as they heard someone enter the shop. "Hello ma'am, can I get you anything?" Enji greeted her with a smile as she came in.

"No, i'm actually looking for somebody." She stepped closer to the counter. "My cousin Kouta used to work here. I was wondering if you might know where he is."

"Oh, you must be Yuka." Enji realized. "Our boss actually just left to get him. He'll be back soon with Kouta, you're welcome to wait here if you'd like."

"Thank you." Yuka replied, then taking at seat at one of the tables.

"You sure you don't want anything?" Enji asked again while she waited.

"No thanks, i'm not really a coffee drinker." She replied with a little smile. Enji smiled back and nodded at her. She sat and would wait there until Kouta arrived.

* * *

"Nice of you to show up."

The dust began to settle in the small Tokyo apartment. The investigators could now get a good look at the figure that had joined the battle. He had a white mask on with a seam in the center, and only one kakgune where his right eye was. The other had 3 horizontal slits over they eye that was impractical to see out of. He also had two white ukaku lances. While all of the residents but Kouta didn't recognize this man, the CCG instantly knew who he was. "No way..." Amon commented in awe.

"That's..." Mado stared in shock.

"ONE-EYED OWL!" Kiyoko screamed in rage at the top of her lungs. She lunged at the One-Eyed Owl full force with her koukaku sword. She slashed straight down at him from over her head. The owl stepped back a bit and blocked it with his right kagune. She then pulled the sword back and slashed horizontally this time from left to right. The owl stepped back to dodge the strike and it missed. She then spun around and used her momentum to try again. This time she came downwards at an angle. but the swift owl dodged moving backwards and it hit the ground. The investigators just stared in awe as the enraged Kiyoko attempted to avenge her husband.

_What's with her, doesn't she know how dangerous the old man is?_ Kouta thought as he watched this unfold. Kiyoko drew the hilt close to her chest and got ready to thrust the sword straight for the ghoul. She used all her force it that forward jab, attempting to stab him right in the heart. When the sword was inches away from his heart it suddenly split in two at an angle. Kiyoko stopped in her tracks and stared at the now broken sword. It looked as if something cut right through it, but what could have done that? It was a quinque, and a koukaku type at that. a rinkaku was the only thing that should have any chance to break it. But this was a clean even cut. She turned to her side to see Lucy had her hand extended in her direction. Kiyoko stared at her as the thought that Lucy might have done that crept into her mind. "Did you..." She was cut off when Lucy turned her hand so that her palm was now facing up. She flicked her wrist and her hand moved up. Kiyoko did as well. She flew to the ceiling and her back slammed against it hard. The force was so so great it left a small crater in the ceiling where she hit. She fell down and when she was about halfway down Lucy used another one of her vectors and sent her flying back towards the other investigators. She hit the floor near them and slid till she landed right at the feet of Amon and Mado. They both looked down at the beaten investigator. She was still conscious but in a great deal of pain.

"Everyone, out the back!" The owl ordered. Kuro pulled something out of his pocket and pulled a pin from it. It was a flashbang grenade that he threw to the CCG.

"Grenade!" Amon shouted as they all ran back away. It exploded in the air above them, blinding them. Kiyoko caught it the worst as she looked up to it, unable to move still. The CCG in the room were left stunned and dazed while the residents along with the One-Eyed Owl escaped out the hole in the back that the owl made. They were on the second floor so it was a bit of a drop but they all made it. Kouta withstood it sue to his ghoul strength and tenacity. The Diclonius girls all landed on their vectors, Mariko also used hers to carry Kurama down. Kuro and Bando both rolled when they hit the ground. The group of them split into different directions while the CCG were distracted above.

"Damn it, they're getting away!" Amon yelled after the effects of the flash grenade began to wear off. He ran over to the hole in the wall with his suitcase in hand. He looked around outside but it was no use. The street was empty and they was so sight of anyone around. Amon grunted in frustration as the targets vanished. Back in the room, Mado was helping Kiyoko get to her feet.

"Ugh, my head." Kiyoko commented, rubbing her head as she got on her feet. "Damn, she hit hard."

"Yeah..." Mado stared at the giant hole in the wall. "But just what is she? She's neither ghoul nor human."

"It doesn't matter now." Amon turned back and walked over to the two of them. "What matters now is that the One-Eyed Owl has returned, and capturing him while the trail is hot should be our top priority."

* * *

It was silent back at Anteiku. Yuka was waiting in the empty coffee shop in Tokyo for her cousin to arrive. The staff were trying to find something to do to keep them busy but it was hard. Touka had already swept the floor 3 times already. They ended up just feeling bored and waiting around for a customer to arrive. They all looked when the door rang a third time for the day. In stepped Yoshimura, with Kouta and Lucy following in tow. "We're back." Yoshmiura called to his staff in a friendly voice. He had retracted his kakuja mask long before arriving and now seemed like a normal person.

"Welcome back." Enji greeted them. "Kouta, you have a visitor."

"Visitor?" He asked confused. He stopped in the middle of the shop and looked over to the tables. There he saw her, and the two of them stared at each other. "Yuka?"

"Kouta!" She ran over to him and hugged him. "Kouta, i'm so glad you're ok! I came here to warn you about something." He held his hand up to cut her off.

"If it's about your mom it's too late." He told her.

"Oh..." She let go of him. "I see... Kouta i'm so sorry."

"For what?" He asked tilting his head in confusion.

"For telling her about you. I never thought she'd actually try to kill even said that if we came clean she would make sure no one got hurt" The betrayal could be heard in her voice.

"Yuka..." Kouta pat her on the head. "I'm not mad at you. If anything i'm mad at her for using you like that."

"Wait, what's going on?" Touka asked.

"Turns out that my aunt is a ghoul investigator." Kouta told her. "She found out about me and the CCG raided our apartment."

"What?!" Nishiki shouted out. "How'd you you guys escape?"

"The old man came and saved us." Kouta explained.

"Oh, so that's what Yomo told you earlier." Touka realized.

"Yes, he caught wind of the CCG's plan to raid their apartment and came to warn me. I did have to reveal myself which i'm sure will cause quite some issues but for now we're all safe and together."

"You took on a whole bunch of them by yourself?" Yuka asked. Yoshimura smiled and nodded.

"Does this surprise you? I'm not quite as frail and my age makes me look." He joked.

"Yeah, no one messed with the One-Eyed Owl." Enji commented. That sent a jolt through Yuka.

"One-Eyed Owl... you? It's you?" Yuka stammered.

"Ah, I see you've been told about me." Yoshimura confirmed for her. She felt her heart begin to race as she realized she was now standing face to face with man that killed her father. "Yes, I am the One-Eyed Owl. But that's not somethign we need to be focusing on now." He turned to Touka. "Touka, would go and make up the empty room for Kouta and Lucy to stay tonight?" He then turned back around to Kouta. "Now then, what happened to..." There was suddenly a click. Everyone turned their heads to Yuka to see she was now pointing that Px4 pistol her mother gave her right at Yoshimura. She was wide eyed and shaking. Anxiety filled her as she pointed a gun at someone for the first time in her life. They could all see she was clearly scared while she aimed the gun at him.

"Hey, what's the big idea?" Nishiki questioned. He took a step closer to her only to have the gun pointed at him instead.

"Stay back! This gun is loaded with Q bullets!" She warned. Everyone else was shocked to hear her say that. She was just out of Lucy's range. If only she was a bit closer. She tried to move in but before she could Yuka turned back to Yoshmiura and would see her if she did. If she didn't do that Lucy would have easily been able to disarm her. Now they were all frozen in the room like that.

"Yuka, what the hell do you think you're doing?" Kouta demanded. She didn't answer, instead keeping her aim fixed on the elderly ghoul in front of her.

"You... do you remember a car crash that you caused many years ago?" The old man began to frown as he came to realize just what all this was about. "You killed my father." Kouta looked dazed for a bit as she spoke those words.

"What are you talking about Yuka? Your father died in a car crash along with my mother when we were four."

"That's not true!" She shook her head as she shouted that. "My mother told me the truth, our parents were lying to us all this time to protect us from the truth. My father was murdered, he caused the car crash on the way back. Kouta, he killed your mother."

"Mom?" Kouta replied. He looked over to the old man in confusion and fear. "That's not true, tell her old man. Tell her you didn't do it." Yoshimura didn't respond, he didn't even look at Kouta. He just gave a pained look to the young girl currently pointing a gun at him. "I see..." Kouta got the message and began to stare off blankly. The man who had taken him in and taught him about the ghoul way of life just turned out to be responsible for his mother's death. Kouta was shocked, hardly able to believe it. But he still had to do something about the situation. Yuka looked scared and like she was about to burst any moment. "Yuka, you don't want to do this." He took a step closer to her.

"Listen to your cousin, you pull that trigger and you're going to make a lot of enemies here." Touka warned. Yuka didn't heed it however. She still kept her shaky aim transfixed on Yoshimura.

"Yuka, please. Just hand over the gun." That's when Yuka fired. She pulled the trigger on the 9mm handgun and there was a loud flash and bang. She turned her head away as she did it and shut her eyes. After she pulled the trigger she looked again to see what she had done. That's when she was stricken in horror. Kouta had stepped between her and Yoshimura in order to try and talk her out of it. He had his hand extended to her to try and peacefully take the gun. However when he did this he ended up getting shot instead. The bullet ripped through his upper right torso. Then everything felt like slow motion. Yuka watched in horror as her cousin fell backwards, his eyes wide after having a bullet ripped through him. Everyone was silent when he hit the ground and for a second or two after. Yuka's jaw dropped and she let the gun fall from her hands.

"Kouta!" She ran over to him and knelt down beside him on the floor. "I'm sorry Kouta, please don't die!" She pleaded desperately. Lucy fell to her knees on the other side of Kouta.

"What have you done?" She asked in grief.

"Kouta please." Yuka began to sob deeply. "I'm sorry, i'll never shoot a gun again in my life. Just please, wake up." She begged as tears fell from her face. Her crying was the only sound in the coffee shop then. Everyone was silent and the Yuka knelt next to her cousin with Lucy on the other side. Then out of nowhere Kouta sat up. He grunted as he did so too. Everyone looked at him with surprised looks. "Kouta, you're alright." Yuka noticed still crying a bit.

"Don't worry about me, i've been though worse." He gave her a friendly smile and she could see the wound was already beginning to heal.

"Kouta, i'm so sorry." She apologized through her tears.

"Yuka..." He gently took her hands and held them. She started to calm down when he did this, feeling his gentle caring touch. "You're not like your mother. You're not a killer. Trust me, once you kill someone you can never come back from it. Promise me you'll never try something like that ever again." She was silent for a moment to regain herself.

"Ok..." She spoke softly. "I'll never shoot anyone again in my life. But please, you will come back after all this right?"

""Yeah. After this is all over we'll come back home and things can go back to normal." He promised. "Please just go home Yuka. I don't want you to get hurt in all this." The two of them then hugged each other in a comforting embrace. Everyone else just watched this tender moment between the two of them, smiling all the while. Kouta was the one who broke it off and got to his feet. He offered his hand down to Yuka and helped her stand up as well.

"I think I owe you two an explanation." Yoshimura came forward.

"It's ok old man, if I can forgive Lucy I can forgive you too." Kouta told him.

"No, it's not that. It's that I am not the real One-Eyed Owl." Everyone in the shop looked at him with shocked expressions.

"What are you talking about?" Touka asked.

"I was not the original One-Eyed Owl. I took on the identity of the owl in order to protect the real one. It was not I who murdered your parents." He looked over to Kouta and Yuka on that last part.

"But... why?" Yuka asked.

"Wait, I thought all kagunes were different for each ghoul. How could you become the owl if you have a different kagune?" Lucy asked.

"Because I don't, we share the same." Yoshmiura replied.

"What? But how?"

"Because it is possible, if a parent passes it to their child." Kouta explained. He then looked Yoshmiura right in the eyes. "That's it isn't it, the real One-Eyed Owl is your child?"

"My daughter, yes." He confirmed. "I knew the CCG would put everything they had into capturing her. So in order to protect her I became a kakuja and took on the identity of the One-Eyed Owl. I faked my seeming defeat in the 2nd ward and disappeared in order to cease their investigation."

"So it wasn't you, you were just trying to protect your daughter." Yuka repeated.

"Yes." Yoshmiura nodded.

"Then..." Yuka looked down. "I'm sorry I tried to shoot you. Knowing the truth, I think you're a very caring parent to do something like that for your kid."

"It's quite alright, I understand the frustration you must have been feeling." Yoshimura smiled a bit "I am truly sorry about your father as well as Kouta's mother. The act of taking a life is nothing but evil. But please, I ask that everyone here keep that confidential. I told you all that with complete trust. I don't wish to cause anymore trouble than there already will be." Everyone in the shop nodded silently to him, agreeing to keep what was just told a secret.

A short while later, Yuka said her goodbyes to Kouta and Lucy, hugging each of them before she departed. Everyone waved as she left the small coffee shop and headed back to Kamakura. It was silent once more inside the shop after a confrontation and emotional scene. Things were once again peaceful, but it would not last. Yoshmiura had once more revealed himself to the CCG. There would certainly be a full force investigation into the matter and Anteiku was now at risk. They would have to watch out from now on.

Touka descended down the stairs back into the shop. "Alright, I got the room ready for you guys." She announced.

"Ah, thanks a lot Touka." Kouta thanked her.

"Now then, I was about to ask what happened to all of your friends at the apartment?" Yoshimura asked.

"Agent Kuro had a plan in case our home was ever attacked. We all spread out so that we couldn't all be targeted at once. Only she knows where everyone is and she told us that she'd meet up with us one by one." Kouta explained. "But I have no clue where she is now."

"Right here." They all turned to see her standing there in the back of the shop. "Came in the back, hope you don't mind."

"Kuro." Kouta greeted her in surprise. "Have you met with any of the others?"

"Kurama, Mariko, and Nana. They're all hiding out at a safehouse. Figured i'd come here next since they were after you."

"What about Bando?" Kouta asked. Kuro shrugged.

"Bando's tough and resourceful. He knows where to go, i'm sure he can take care of himself." She then walked closer to everyone in the shop."Right now we need to figure out what our next plan of action is. We need to be even more careful from now on."

"If you don't mind, i have a suggestion." Yoshimura spoke up.

"What is it?"

"Well, we are facing a terrible threat that'll arrive in about 4 months. Our resources are limited as is so..." He then smiled. "I think we should ask the CCG to join us."


	18. Unlikely Alliance

Everyone was staring at Yoshimura is disbelief. There was even some frustration that could be seen in Kouta and Touka's faces. The owner of Anteiku had just suggested that they try to team up with the people tasked with hunting their kind down. Even Agent Kuro who was human and Lucy who was a Diclonius couldn't believe it. It was an absurd idea to them all, team up with the CCG. Many of them had lost people to the CCG, being buddy buddy with them wasn't exactly high on their priority list. "Are you insane?" Kouta questioned him. "You want us to go to the CCG and ask for their help?"

"Not exactly like that, but close to it." Yoshimura replied.

"Absolutely not!" Touka shouted out. "I will not fight with them!"

"Sorry, but i'm with her on this one boss." Enji told him. "This is crazy."

"Have you forgotten what some of us have lost because of them?!" Nishiki harshly reminded him, yelling in anger.

"Of course not Nishiki, I never could." The old man replied defensively. "But given our current condition we don't have many other options. My appearance will surely have doubled their efforts. They will put their all into trying to find me, and thus the discovery of Anteiku's operations are inevitable. A preemptive strike on them would just be foolish, they outnumber and are far stronger. The only real way to get them to stop chasing us is to join forces. I'm sure once presented with the evidence of the attack planned on Tokyo that they will not be so against such a plan."

"So you want us to tell them about Kakuzawa and then offer to fight him together?" Kouta repeated. Yoshimura smiled and nodded at him. "I'm also jumping aboard the 'This is a bad idea' ship. What happens if they use this to spring a trap?"

"That's a risk we're going to have to take. So far all we have to go up against Kakuzawa's forces is us and a couple thousand soldiers from the other research facility. Having the CCG as an ally could greatly increase our chances in the upcoming battle."

"Or get us all killed." Enji commented.

"At this rate, we'll all be dead or hunted down before the fight can even begin. So what do we really have to lose at this point?" Yoshimura told them. He was right too. The One-Eyed Owl's reappearance would cause the CCG to focus all their effort into tracking him down. They would likely be discovered before Kakuzawa's invasion could even begin. They were backed into a corner, and this crazy idea was the only real shot they had.

"I agree... this is a bad idea." Kuro spoke up. "But he's right, we really don't have any other choice."

"Then how exactly are we supposed to go about doing this?" Nishiki asked.

"You just leave that to me, i'm used to doing this kind of thing." Kuro told him as she fixed her glasses.

"Good, then we leave it up to you." Yoshimura replied. Kuro nodded silently and left out the back door. "Kouta and Lucy, Touka will show you to your room upstairs. You may stay here for the time being."

"Thanks, we appreciate it." Kouta told the owner with a smile.

"Right this way." Touka led them upstairs to the room where they would be living until further notice. Touka and Hinami each had their own rooms on the upper levels, they stayed there as residents. The break room was the first room upstairs, followed by Yoshimura's office. After that it was a few apartment rooms for others to stay. However only Hinami and Touka used them, and now Kouta and Lucy would share one. Yoshimura owned the place but had his own place of residence elsewhere in the 20th ward. So now Anteiku would have four residents for the time. When the three of them passed Touka's room in the hall Lucy noticed something. "Ayato?" She read on the doorplate to Touka's room. "Who's Ayato?" Touka stopped in her tracks when she asked that. Kouta and Lucy both gave her confused looks. Touka didn't turn back to look at them, she kept her head forward as she answered.

"He's my brother, but he hasn't been here in a long time." She told them solemnly.

"You never mentioned you had a brother." Kouta told her. "What happened to him?"

"One day he just up and left, said he was tired of this place and everyone in it. I haven't seen him since."

"Oh... sorry."

"It's fine, you didn't know." She began to walk again and led them to the room right next to her's. "This is it, you two will be staying here." She pulled two keys out of her pocket and handed them to Kouta and Lucy. "Just keep it down at night, I don't want to hear that stuff."

"Hey! Just what are you trying to say?" Kouta defended with a red face. Touka didn't respond, instead walking away from the two of them. Kouta looked at her frustrated but unlocked the door nonetheless. It was a small modest place but still nicer than the apartment they had been staying in. There was a one room living room with kitchen counter set up against the wall where the hallway entrance was. There was also only one bath with a shower and only one bedroom. Kouta and Lucy split up to look around the place. Back outside the apartment, Touka walked down the hall and headed back downstairs to the coffee shop.

"So, you got some new neighbors huh?" Nishiki asked as she came down. "Think you might hear some loud noises in the middle of the night?" He asked with a grin.

"I wouldn't put it beneath them. Especially since I only gave them one bed." She replied.

"Did you really?" Touka nodded silently and Nishiki burst out laughing.

"Seriously Touka?" Kouta asked unheard by her since he was upstairs. He was standing in the bedroom of their new place and found that it only had one bed. It was a raised western style bed unlike the mats they had used so far. He was positive there must have been another bed, but Touka purposely gave them only one. He sighed as he realized what she had done.

"What is it?" Lucy came over to the doorway beside him and saw it as well. "Oh... I can sleep in the living room if you'd like."

"No." He sounded disappointed. "It's alright, we'll just have to share a bed for awhile. Is that alright with you?" Her face started to turn a little red.

"Yes that would be ok with me." She replied.

* * *

Meanwhile at the CCG building in the 20th ward, the whole building was on full alert and everyone was running around. After the team had come back with the news of the One-Eyed Owl's reappearance the order was given to have all available staff work on searching for the owl. The whole building was busier and noisier than ever as the whole staff was focusing their efforts on trying to find any leads to track down the owl and bring him to justice. Amon was sitting at his desk feeling more stressed out than ever. The memory of the earlier raid still running through his mind along with the sight of the One-Eyed Owl. He was almost like a legend to newer investigators who had not seen him, given a few more years and it's likely that's all he would become. But now he was back, and he was once more in the CCG's crosshairs. Amon wanted to find him now too, maybe he knew more about Kouta. Maybe he helped out because he was a one-eyed ghoul too. Perhaps there was more one-eyed ghouls than just those two. So many questions, yet so little leads. Kouta and Lucy were like ghosts, hardly being seen out in public and have no traceable records. Either they knew what they were doing or someone else did. Amon wondered if it was that person who threw the flash grenade who was the expert.

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard someone walk into his office. Shinohara was paying him a visit once more. "Hey First Class Amon, big day huh?" He walked over next to Amon who was sitting in his chair. "First you finally meet Eyepatch who you've been searching for then you get to see the One-Eyed Owl and live to tell about it. Many did not get the same chance."

"Yeah, to think that he would show up at such a time without any warning. I wonder if it has something to do with the two of them being one-eyed ghouls." Amon told the higher class investigator.

"That could be, but we won't know for sure until we find them."

Amon slammed his fists against his desk. "Damn it! I was so close and I hit another brick wall. Maybe even worse this time. Of all things I never expected the owl to get involved."

"Amon, I think you might need a break." Shinohara told him. Amno sighed and stood up.

"Yeah, I need to use the restroom." He fixed his tie before stepping out of his office. Even as he went for a walk his thoughts were still a jumbled mess. He thought about why the One-Eyed Owl helped out back there. He thought about why Kouta spared him all those months ago. He thought about Lucy beating up Kiyoko without so much as touching her. What was she? Some new breed of ghoul, or something else? Either way she was helping out ghouls and would be charged at least as an accomplice. She would face justice just like the rest of them. Amon ran his hands under the cold water as his thoughts clouded his mind. This only further prevented him from noticing he wasn't alone in the bathroom. When he was running the water he felt something press up against his neck. A butterfly knife flipped open behind him and the blade was pressed against his neck.

"Don't move." He heard a voice order from behind. He looked up to see the reflection of the man from the apartment behind him. He was facing towards the door with his right hand holding the knife. "Keep quiet." He also ordered. Amon gritted his teeth and stared at the reflection. "I'm not here to kill you, i'm here to pass on some information."

"What?" Amon whispered. he saw Kuro move her other hand and she placed a manila folder on the counter next to him.

"In about 4 months Tokyo is going to be invaded." Amon's eyes widened. "It has to do with Lucy, and others like her. Everything you need to know is in that folder, read it and if you want to help come to the marked location."

"Help? You want me to help a bunch of ghouls?" Amon whispered in a harsh tone.

"If you read that you'll understand you don't have much of a choice, and neither do we. The incoming army is greater than both of ours. I've done some research and thought we could trust you. Show that to no one else until you decide." Kuro flipped the knife closed and stepped out of the bathroom. After he was gone Amon grabbed the folder and ran out. He looked both ways down the hall but saw no one. Kuro had simply vanished, almost like a ghost. Amon stared down at the manila folder in his hands for a moment wondering what was inside. Whatever it was, it was the only lead they had. He went back to his office to study it.

* * *

That night Lucy entered the bedroom she would be sharing with Kouta. She was dressed in pink pajamas, and Kouta was in a white t shirt and black gym shorts. Both of them were barefoot as well. Kouta was already lying on his back on the right side of the bed. "Hey, you ready for bed?" He turned his head to her and asked.

"Yeah." She responded. She went over and pulled off the covers on the left side, getting under them for the night. Kouta reached to the small table on his side and turned off the lamp that was lighting up the room. She was lying on her right side with her back to him, while he was on his back, facing up towards the ceiling and with his hands behind his head. She stared up with his eyes open for a few moments.

"Are you alright with this?" He asked.

"Yeah, actually i'm glad I can be so close to you Kouta." She smiled a bit even though she was still not facing him.

"Really?" He asked.

"Yeah, we had to stay in different rooms at the apartment and there's no way Yuka would allow this, so i'm glad for this."

"Well then, that's good." He smiled up at the ceiling. "Do you think they'll help?"

"Huh?"

"The CCG, do you think they'll help us or come after us?" He asked.

"I don't know." She replied. "A few months ago I never would have thought Kurama and I would end up on the same side. I despised that man, but now he's with all of us, ready to go against Kakuzawa. So I don't know. I normally wouldn't think they would help us, but maybe they will."

"That's true." He responded still looking up at the ceiling.

"Whatever happens though, I just wish to stay close to to you Kouta." He turned his head over to her. She was starting to close her eyes, ready to drift off the sleep. Then she suddenly felt something wrap around her. She felt Kouta come closer. He turned his body to her and wrapped his arm around her shoulder and below her neck, holding her close to him.

"Don't worry." He spoke as his head was right behind her's. "I won't ever leave you, that's a promise." She felt warm in that moment and in his grip. She brought her hands up to her neck and placed them on his forearm. She held him like that with her face close to his arm. After everything he had actually cared about her like this. He had himself pressed up against her and an arm around her as they lie in bed. Kouta began to to feel something against his arm, they were tears. "Lucy, why are you crying?"

"Because i'm happy." She told him. "Kouta, I couldn't have begun to imagine i'd actually get to fall asleep with you like this. I am very glad to be so close to you." Koua smiled at her from behind.

"Goodnight Lucy."

"Goodnight Kouta." She responded. The two of them fell asleep like that and they were both happy.

* * *

Amon was sitting in his office with his hands gripping the sides of his head. He had his head hung down and he was facing the desk. It had been a few days since he was visited by Agent Kuro, He had read over the file that was now sitting on his desk at least 3 times. He still found it hard to believe what was inside. It was almost surreal, it shook him to his very core knowing the contents inside that folder. Of all things he never expected something like this. Lucy, the girl who beat up a First Class Investigator without so much as touching her, was a totally different species than humans or ghouls. She had beaten up Kiyoko using a set of invisible arms called vectors. Even worse, it seemed she went easy on her. If Lucy wanted Kiyoko could be headless or in two pieces. Amon could hardly think anymore, he didn't know what to think at this point.

He was a ghoul investigator, he had sworn his life to hunt down ghouls. They were the enemy of mankind, they would hunt people like animals. In fact to him they were no better than a sick animal. So it didn't make sense why they would be protecting people. A group of ghouls fighting a whole invasion force. A mad man was going to invade in about 4 months with an army of 5000 diclonii and attack Tokyo. Amon really had no idea what to make of the Diclonius. They were an X factor in all this. He had never heard of them until he read the file that was given to him. They were supposed to wipe out humanity and replace them just as humans had done to neanderthals many thousands of years ago. But their queen, who was Lucy, had decided to turn her back on her own kind in favor of a more peaceful life. She could easily see to it that humans would be extinct within 5 years, but she refused. Now this mad man Kakuzawa was planning on doing it in order to see his dream come true. This was all too much, even for a seasoned investigator like Amon.

His partner Mado then stepped into the room and joined him. She had a cup of coffee in each hand from the cafe downstairs. She walked over to him while he sat in that position. "You look like a mess." She told him. "Here, I think you need this." She placed a cup of coffee on the desk.

"Thanks." He showed his gratitude in a tired and exhausted voice. His hair was a mess and there were dark circles under his eyes. He took a large sip of the coffee, withstanding the heat in need of the caffeine. Shinohara stepped into his office once more with Juuzou by his side.

"Amon, you look tired." Shinohara commented. "You've been working yourself half to death on this lead you found."

"Speaking of did you find anything yet?" Mado asked. Amon didn't respond, he starred off wordlessly thinking about what was in the folder. "Hey Amon, what's wrong?" She asked when he did not respond. He got up from his desk wordlessly and went over to the door. He closed it and locked the door so that no one else may enter an hear them. The other three just looked confused as to what he was doing.

"I need to tell you something, but I have to have your words that this will never leave this room." He told them all in a very serious tone.

"Sure..." Shinohara responded a bit unsure. "Why, what did you find?" Amon walked back over to his seat and sat down once more.

"A few days ago I was paid a visit, by one of the people in the apartment when we raided it. The one who threw the flashbang when they fled. He handed me this." He picked the manila folder off his desk and held it up to give to his partner.

"What's this?" Mado asked as she took it from him.

"It's about that girl who beat up Kiyoko, Lucy. Turns out she's not human, but she isn't a ghoul either."

"The one that didn't even lay a hand on her?" Shinohara asked. "Then, just what is she?" Amon was silent for a moment and Mado opened up the folder and began to look through it.

"She's the next step in the evolutionary chain." Amon explained. They all looked at him shocked to hear that. "Her pineal gland is far larger than that of a human's or a ghoul's. About the size of an egg. Normally that'd cause deformities in the skull. In this case however her horns were formed in order to make more room. Her kind have an ability called vectors, they're several extra invisible arms that can also cut though matter."

"So that's how she threw Kiyoko around like that." Mado realized. "How many extra, and how long do they reach?"

"It depends apparently. There was a file for each girl in there. Lucy's is about 2 meters, however the youngest girl there has a reach of about 11 meters. Just as well she also has many more vectors, about 50. While Lucy has only about 7. Their vectors also all carry a special trait, they can spread a virus to others by entering their body without solidifying." Again a shock was sent through the room. "The infected will display no symptoms, but from that point on any children they have will come out a Diclonius. They will become what's called Silpelit Diclonii, Diclonii being the plural term. They are infertile but are still capable of spreading around the virus that causes Diclonius birth."

"But how could they replace us without being able to make babies?" Juuzou asked confused and tilting his head.

"Because there is one original carrier, the queen of their kind, Lucy. She is the only one capable of reproduction, and the one responsible for all Silpelit births. According to that file in just 5 years she could see to it that her kind replaces man and we would be extinct." There was a silent moment of horror that went through the room at that instance.

"So that's it then?" Shinohara spoke in a shaken up tone. "We're done for, we'll be replaced just like the neanderthal?"

"Apparently not." Amon told him. "According to this file she's turned her back on her kind, she wishes to live among humans instead. She's not the one we have to worry about. There's a man named Kakuzawa, he was put in charge of a government funded research facility. He has s birth defect that gives him horns and he believed his ancestors were ancient Diclonius whose genes had been muddled after years of breeding with humans. It's untrue however, they're just a birth defect. But he seeks to replace mankind with the Diclonius. His plans were thwarted before by Kouta and Lucy, aka Eyepatch and Imp. But he fled, and now he's breeding an army of 5,000 diclonii clones. Which he plans to use to invade Tokyo." Mado came upon a blue sheet of paper marked 'Lebensborn' at the top in a red ink stamp. She read through it and her eyes widened.

"Here it is, he planned to kidnap and force himself upon Lucy in order to create a breed of Diclonius that could reproduce. That's sick." She commented.

"So where is this Kakuzawa now?" Shinohara asked.

"We don't know, off on some undisclosed island preparing his invading forces." Amon told him.

"Do we know around when this will happen?"

"In just under 4 months." Amon replied. "Not only that, but it seems as if the people in that apartment we raided knew and were preparing to fight him."

"What?" Mado couldn't believe such a thing.

"Yes, along with a group of ghouls. That's why the One-Eyed Owl appeared when he did. He caught wind of our plans and went to save them. Apparently the few of them along with a couple thousand men from another research facility plan to oppose Kakuzawa with anti-Diclonius technology when the time comes. The JSDF have already been alerted and will evacuate the city when that time comes. Not only that, but... they asked for our help."

"What?!" Shinohara was shocked. "They want us to fight alongside a bunch of ghouls?"

"Why in the hell would we do a thing like that?" Mado asked frustrated.

"We might not have much of a choice." Amon replied.

"Amon, I know that you're concerned about this but helping ghouls? The higher ups would never allow such a thing." Shinohara reminded him.

"I know... we might have to defy orders for the first time." Amon said as he crossed his fingers and put them against his mouth. "Either we lose our job or we risk the downfall of humanity." Everyone was silent in that moment. Mado closed the folder she was reading through. No one knew what to say really, either way things did not look good for the investigators. There was a collective sigh from everyone in the room.

"Well this is one fine situation we've been backed into." Shinohara commented.

"I've made my decision." Amon spoke up. "I'm going to meet with them and help them."

"What?" Mado and Shinohara replied in shock simultaneously.

"I can't just sit back and watch some mad man invade this city as he tries to wipe out mankind. I have to do something about this, orders or not." Everyone just stared at him silently.

"Is your decision final?" Mado asked him.

"Yes." Amon nodded. She sighed.

"Then I guess i'll have to come along too." He looked surprised by this. "I am your partner after all and I can't have you going off on your own like that and dying on me. Someone needs to watch your back." He looked little stunned at her for a moment before regaining himself.

"Thank you Mado." The two of them looked over at the other two investigators. "Shinohara, I ask that you please keep quiet about this. If anyone asks you don't know anything."

"Don't worry about me, because i'll be joining you two."

"Huh?" Amon and Mado were both shocked to hear him offer to join in this.

"Amon's right, we can't just let Kakuzawa attack our home without putting up a fight ourselves. Orders be damned, I joined to try and make the world a better place. If I have to fight alongside a few ghouls in order to do that so be it." He looked down at his protege and partner. "What about you Juuzou?"

"Sure, fighting an army sounds like fun." He smiled up at his superior.

"Good, then it's settled. The four of us will provide support at this upcoming battle. So where are we supposed to meet these ghouls?"

* * *

It was late at night the next day, this was when the note said to meet them. It was a marked back alley in the 20th ward where no one would happen upon their meeting. The alley was actually two that met at a T-shaped intersection. There was a building to their backs as they face down the alleyway. The four of them felt nervous, unsure of what was going to happen. The instructions were to meet at this alley around 9 pm one this day. But it could have been a trap. All that information could have been faked. The investigators had no way of knowing. They were all placing their bets on this, it was all or nothing. Amon, Mado, and Shinohara had their quinques with them just in case. It was quiet in the alley, if it wasn't for the sound of cars on the roads nearby it would be dead silent. It felt eerie to them, their nerves already riled from the situation. Amon looked at the watch on his wrist. "It's almost time." He told them others. After that they head footsteps approaching. Someone was coming. They all looked down the alley to see two figures approaching casually. When threw drew closer the investigators could clearly make out that it was an unmasked Kouta and Lucy. Both of them had stern looks on their faces as they approached the investigators.

"So, you actually came?" Kouta greeted them.

"Yes." Amon nodded as he replied.

"Then did the CCG agree?"

"No, there's no way the higher ups would agree to it. This is what you've got." Amon informed them.

"Well then, I guess this is the first time we're meeting without the intent of fighting each other." Kouta commented.

"Yes, I believe proper introduction are in order. I am First Class Koutarou Amon." He introduced himself.

"First Class Akira Mado, his partner." Mado followed suit.

"I'm Special Class Yukinori Shinohara." Shinohara introduced himself. "This is my partner Rank 3 Investigator Juuzou Suzuya." Juuzou smiled and waved at them when Shinohara introduced him.

"It is just two of you like the note said right?" Amon questioned.

"Yeah, it's just us." Kouta told him. "I guess you were afraid this might be a trap too huh?"

"You could say that." Amon replied.

"Uh oh." Juuzou smiled and pointed down the alley behind Kouta and Lucy. "Looks like Eyepatch lied." The investigators looked past them as Kouta and Lucy turned around to see what he meant. There was a third figure approaching from behind. They saw the figure of a child in a grey hoodie and black skir with black leggings appear. She had her hood up and her face was covered with a sparrow mask.

"Damn it Kouta, what's the meaning of this?" Amon demanded. Kouta kept his gaze fixed on this unknown figure, his left eye turning into a kakugan.

"She's not with us." He told them as he looked ready for battle. Sparrow let out her lavender ukaku that took the shape of two bird wings. She began to lunge.

"Everyone down!" Amon shouted. They all hit the ground as Sparrow flew forward. He wings flew her across all of them as she attempted to slash through them. She missed as a result of them all hitting the ground though. She landed on her feet against the building behind them. They all popped their heads up to see her land on the wall. She kicked off it and launched at them again. They all ducked one more and she flung herself upside down at them. She passed over and again and fixated herself upright before sliding on the ground. When Kouta got down a second time he fell backwards and landed on his back. He then sent out his kagune to spin him upright and launch himself at Sparrow. He used all 4 to jab at her with a direct attack. Sparrow launched herself into the air above his head and landed behind him. He spun around trying to use his right elbow to hit her in the side of the head. However she spun and ducked then ended up elbowing him in the sent out her vectors at the girl. Much to her surprise however Sparrow rand at her and slid beneath them. When she got within range of Lucy she did a sweep kick and sent her flying up then landing on her ass.

"You won't get me like that." Sparrow told Lucy in her cold emotionless tone. There was something about her voice too, something that Lucy couldn't put her finger on. She didn't have time to think about that now though. Amon rushed over and let out his quinque Kura. He swung an sparrow horizontally, she jumped in the air above it to dodge. He swung again the other direction and she jumped again, this time however she was caught mid air by Mado's whip-like bikaku quinque. Sparrow fell back and hit the ground just out of Amon's reach. She sat back up and felt the blood from the slash across her chest. She looked down at it and stood back up, the wound already starting to close. Sparrow darted for the investigators. Amon slashed at her again only to have her jump and flip over his head. Mado whipped at her again but this time she caught it. It stung but she held on and pulled in the whip. Mado came flying forward and landed on the ground. Sparrow landed between her and Amon, her wings now crystallized. She shot ukaku shards at Mado while she was down. Shinohara jumped in the way and shielded her with his Demon Yamada.

"Thanks." She thanked him as she got herself back. Up. He trned his head back to her, smiling and nodding. Amon spun around 180 degrees to attack again. Sparrow back-flipped above and out of the way of his swung. Her legs caught her on a fire escape above and she crystallized her wings while hanging there upside down. She shot more shards at them from up there. Amon and Shinohara joined together in blocked them. Kouta jumped high into the air using his kagune to lift him up. He got up to the fire escape and grabbed onto it with his rinkaku, ripping it down in one fell swoop. After it was torn from its hinges, Sparrow launched herself off it and landed behind the investigators and even farther away from Kouta and Lucy. She turned back around to face them, her ukaku back in their normal state. She took a half step forward when something ripped through her. A lance quinque had cut through her lower right side and was still there. She turned her head back to see another investigator had joined them. The other four investigators all stared at him in shock. Kishou Arima had just joined the battle, it was all over. Sparrow shoved the lance out of her side and spun around to try and slash at him with her wings. he dodged it by moving his upper hafl to the side and down a bit. Sparrow gripped her side in pain after she did that however and fell to one knee. She looked down at her wound then back at him. She spun around once more and flew up into the air. She took off across the rooftops fleeing the battlefield. They all stared up at her as she flew off and disappeared into the night. The 6 there earlier all stared at Arima.

"Special Class Arima... what are you doing here?" Shinohara asked.

"I could ask you the same." He replied in a stoic voice. "The four of you coming here to meet with ghouls. The CCG caught wind of your meeting." The four investigators were all stunned. This meant they were in big trouble. "We found that whole file and everything in it, it even went up to the Chairman." He placed his hand inside his jacket and reached around for something. He walked up to the other investigators who were all frozen from fear. Arima walked right past them and went for Kouta and Lucy. The two of them tensed up as he approached. This guy was a Special Class Investigator, he wasn't to be taken lightly. He stopped in front of them and held out his hand, offering a small paper card. "Although I disagree the Chairman thinks your plan was a good idea and wants to offer our help. He wants to meet with all of you tomorrow." Kouta took the card from him and looked at it. It war marked with the CCG's stamp and had a time and was dated for tomorrow. This was legit. "Don't be late." With that he walked away and disappeared from the alley. Kouta looked down at the card again, trying to process all this.

"Hmm, maybe we were wrong about the higher ups." Shinohara noted.

"Does this mean it's going to be an actual war now?" Juuzou asked excited.

"Seems like it." Shinohara told him. Juuzou jumped for joy and cheered.

"I have to say that was pretty unexpected." Amon commented. "I was scared half to death when I saw Arima there." He suddenly looked very stressed and clutched his chest.

"Yeah, we'd all be dead if he was ordered to kill us." Shinohara responded. "Can we count on you to be at that meeting tomorrow?" He asked Kouta.

"Yeah." Kouta told him as he put the card in his pocket. "We'll be there. I let the others know too." Shinohara nodded as the two groups headed out their separate ways. This was the beginning of an unusual alliance, but one that would save the world from an invasion unlike any it had ever seen before. Kouta and Lucy would go tell their group from the apartment and those at Anteiku. The investigators headed home for the night in anticipation of the next day. Sparrow was retreating, injured from the battle but knowing that would not be their last.


	19. Nest of Doves or of Hornets?

It was about 1 in the afternoon in the 20th ward of Tokyo. The small group of forces from Kamakura and the employees of Anteiku were all gathered outside of the CCG's offices in the 20th ward. There inside waiting was a group of Special Class Investigators along with Bureau Director Yoshitoki Washuu and his father Tsuneyoshi Washuu, the Chairman of the entire CCG. The two of them were normally holed up in the CCG headquarters in the 1st ward. But after hearing about a case involving a new breed of humanoids and a plan to invade Tokyo, they decided to extend their hand to these strangers in order to band together to protect not only Tokyo but humanity itself. Even though they would be working with ghouls, they would put their differences aside for the greater good. Kakuzawa was a threat to all of them. If he got his way humans and ghouls alike would be wiped out, only Diclonius would be left. An evil greater than either one of them. Only together could they bring him down without any doubts about it. So once bitter and sworn enemies were going to join forces to fight a great evil.

But everyone was nervous. As they stood outside the large office building they all feared in case it might be a trap. It was possible they were leading the ghouls into there like lambs to the slaughter, trying to take them out in one fell swoop. This made them all nervous as they stood outside. The investigators inside were just as nervous. They were afraid of bringing ghouls into their base of operations. What if the ghouls were planning this in order to infiltrate and destroy their base? What if it was all a lie in order to make a move against the CCG? So many uncertainties that both parties were anxious as the time approached. The party outside was still waiting for two more. They saw them approach too not long after arriving themselves. It was the head operative and fleet commander that had come to the apartment a month earlier. The operative was dressed in a formal black military uniform, as well as the fleet commander. They were all dressed nicely for today. Nishiki, Kuro, Yoshimura and Enji were all dressed in black suits with black ties to match. Kouta was dressed in khaki pants along with a black dress shirt and red tie. Lucy was in a nice pink dress that reached to just above her knees. She also had a ribbon tied in bows to cover her horns. Touka was in a white dress shirt with a black vest over it and a shorter black skirt with black stockings underneath. Kaya was dressed in a similar fashion to her. Kurama was in his blue suit and tie that he usually wore. Nana was in the dress her papa gave her when she first left the institute, along with her own ribbon to cover her horns. Mariko was in a fancy new light blue dress with frills on the bottom and end of the sleeves, as well as a matching blue beret to cover her horns. Bando was the only one who was not dressed up, simply in slacks a grey t-shirt and olive drab jacket over it.

They all stood there and looked up at the tall office building. This was the moment, they were either walking into a doves nest or a hornets nest. If the CCG was telling the truth then all would go well and they would align as a much more powerful force to stop Kakuzawa. If it was a trap, then they were walking right into it without any way out. They'd be completely surrounded and that'd would be the end of that. But they didn't have a choice. They were invited in, and they couldn't turn it down. Yoshimura knew of Arima already, and he knew that if the CCG was planning to take them out they could have just tracked them to the coffee shop and sent in Arima. This made him less concerned yet his fears did not go away. It was time now anyway, they had to go in. Now that the last two had joined them they were going to finally enter the office and find out the truth. Kuro led the way as they all entered huddled together. The group of them entered the lobby of the 20th Ward's CCG office building. It looked just like any other office building, people at the front desks and a few workers running around with their work. The group noticed they got looks as they walked in too. Whispers about that being them, and about some of them being ghouls. Others discussing why ghouls were being allowed inside in the first place, why would the chairman agree to this? They ignored these whispers and looked around, unsure of where to go. Thankfully there was some assistance waiting for them.

"Ah, there you are." They heard Shinohara greet them. Everyone looked to see him waiting there with another investigator.

"Ah, Special Class Shinohara. Were you waiting on us?" Kouta asked him.

"Yes, we were ordered to show you to the conference room. This is Special Class Investigator Iwao Kuroiwa." He introduced the man next to him. Iwao grunted and nodded at them. "You can follow us, right this way." Shinohara turned around and the two investigators led them deeper into the office building. They were taken up a flight of stairs too up to a higher floor. When they got to the floor they needed Kouta spoke up.

"So who all is going to be at this meeting?"

"The chairman along with his son the director. Plus all the Special Class Investigators." Shinohara informed them. "The conference room is just down this hall." The two special class investigators led the group down the hall in the center of that floor. The conference room was kept away from windows in case of ghoul attacks. They preferred safety and precautions over a nice view of the city. Eventually the two investigators stood on either side of a wooden door, a plate marked 'Conference Room 001' on the side of it. Iwao opened the door and let everyone in. Shinohara went in first, followed by the group of everyone. When they got there they found everyone else already waiting. Sitting at the far end was an old man with a long white beard, that was chairman Tsuneyoshi Washuu, to his right was his son. There were three more investigators in the room as well, all of them high ranking Special Class Investigators. They were the best of the best, as well as the most dangerous.

"You've finally arrived." The Chairman greeted them. "Everyone, please take a seat." Shinohara and Iwao took a seat next to Special Class Itsuki Mardue, head of the 11th ward's branch division. Itsuke was on the left of the chairman. Across Shinohara sat next to him and across from Shinohara was Kiyoko Aura. Next to her sat Mougan Tanakamarua. The fleet commander took a seat next to Mougan and the head operative next to him. Next to him sat Kuro, Yoshimura, Bando, and Nana. Kurama was on the far end, with Nana on one side and Mariko on the other. Next to Mariko was the rest of the staff of Anteiku. Kaya, Enji, Nishiki, Touka, Lucy, and Kouta next to Shinohara. Once everyone had taken their seats the meeting could begin. "Now then, let us begin the first gathering of peace between humans and ghouls." The Chairman officially began. "I apologize that not all of our Special Class Investigators could be here today. Kishou Arima is currently absent."

"He never comes to meetings anyway." Itsuki commented.

"Then our apologies as well, we have 3 other ghouls who could not make it either." Yoshimura met with his apologies. The chairman nodded at him.

"Most of our Investigators were only given brief details of today's meeting. Would one of you please care to elaborate on the situation." Tsuneyoshi asked his guests. The head operative was the one who spoke up.

"A few years ago a new race of people was discovered, they are known as the Diclonius. The Diclonius can be distinguished by two horns on their head, which is caused by having an enlarged pineal gland. This also gives them another ability, several extra invisible arms which we call vectors. Their number of vectors and range varies from individual to individual. However they are fast enough to stop bullets, powerful enough to through objects not even the strongest man on earth could lift, and so far we have yet to find a material they can't cut through."

"What?!" Itsuki shouted out. "What's all this about horned people and invisible arms?"

"Because, a man who once ran a research facility on the Diclonius is preparing an army of 5,000 clones to invade Toyko. His ultimate goal is to wipe out mankind and have the Diclonius replace them as the dominant species on earth." The head operative explained. The Special Class Investigators who were not already aware of this all looked shocked.

"Are we positive there's nothing they can't cut through?" Kiyoko asked.

"As far as we know yes. We have a report from three investigators that one of them even managed to cut through a First Class Investigator's koukaku quinque." Shinohara told her.

"Three of the girls here are Diclonius as well." The operative informed them. Nana and Mariko took off their headgear to reveal their horns. Lucy begrudgingly did after them. She knew she was being stared at and she hated it. Even if they had good intentions or would not hurt her she still hated people staring at them.

"Can we trust these three?" Itsuki asked in an accusing manner.

"They came of their own will, I see no reason why we can't." Kuro responded.

"Is that so?" Itsuki eyed them all up.

"That man tried to force himself upon me, you think I really would want to help him?" Lucy ceased his suspicion. Itsuki sat back feeling a little embarrassed and wishing he didn't ask that. Mougan chuckled when he saw Itsuki's shame. Kouta tensed up after Lucy said that, which went unnoticed by anyone. A fire built inside him when he thought about Kakuzawa trying to force himself upon Lucy. It made Kouta's blood boil, no one would do such a thing to her and get away with it. He quickly regained himself though and thought about why it suddenly made him so enraged.

"Who is this man anyway, and why is he attempting such a thing?" Yoshitoki asked.

"His name is Kakuzawa, and he thinks of himself as a Diclonius." The head operative told them. "He has a birth defect where his whole bloodline has horns on their heads. He was told stories of a long lost race of Diclonius and how they would one day be revived and take mankind's place. But they were all lies, he's human just like you and I. Yet even after he was told this it seems he still clings to these stories and his work. Some of us here banded together to counter his forces during the invasion. We asked the ghouls for help and they obliged."

"Yes, I think that's the question going through all of our minds right now. Why?" Yoshitoki asked.

"Tokyo is my home, it always has been." Yoshimura began. "Not only that, but this man is nothing but pure evil. We kill each other, trying to come up with different reasons to justify it. But in the end taking a life amounts to nothing but evil. So taking 7.5 billion, would only come from the mind of a sick and twisted individual. He can not be allowed to do such a thing."

"Really? Correct me if i'm wrong but are you not the One-Eyed Owl?" Kiyoko asked. "We were informed that he would be here today. After everything you've done, how can you say such a thing?" Yoshimura frowned.

"I regret the choices that i've made in the past, the lives lost in that confrontations were pointless. Nothing can bring them back, but I would at least like to atone for what i've done and save as many lives as possible in this battle."

"And why should we trust you?" Itsuki asked coldly.

"I can not ask you to trust me, but I am telling the truth."

"I still don't believe that." Itsuki shot back.

"Enough!" The chairman interjected. "Now is not the time to be fighting among ourselves. This Kakuzawa is far to great a threat to waste time arguing on bygones. We have a lot of each other's blood on our hands and a bad past. But it's time to forget about that and start working together. I expect to get something done here, not just bicker. Am I understood?" There was some grumbling from Itsuki yet but they all nodded their heads at him. "Very well, if you wish to atone for your sins then we will give you the chance in the upcoming battle. That will be the first point of our treaty. Is there anything else we should cover?"

"Yes, I would like the 20th ward to become a safe zone. We will monitor ghoul activity in that area and keep them in line, in exchange no ghouls living within our guides can be hunted down." Yoshimura stated.

"How exactly do you plan on keeping them in line?" Tsuneyoshi asked.

"We gather bodies of suicide victims from a cliff just outside of city limits. We have a storage of them to feed ghouls in our area and keep the attacks down to a minimum. If they continue to hunt after that, then they can be dealt with by you." The chairman thought for a moment.

"Very well, you may keep them fed and in agreement we will not go after any who follow your ways. However I ask that you keep some way for the bodies to be identified, fingerprints, dental records, just some way for us to identify the deceased and inform their families."

"Agreed." Yoshimura nodded.

"We would also like you to act as CCG agents in the 20th ward and surrounding areas if we ever need to call upon you. Such as to help track down a dangerous ghoul or even assists in an engagement." The chairman added.

"Very well." Yoshimura nodded again. "If you ever need our help, those of us here who are ghouls will assist you as allies."

"Then those will be the terms of our treaty. Now, I wish to know anything more you can tell us about Kakuzawa's forces."

"His 5,000 clones are all genetically based on Mariko here." Kurama looked over to his daughter. "She's one of the most powerful Diclonii we've ever encountered. She has around 50 vectors, each of them approximately 11 meters in length."

"They've all been fitted with mind control devices as well." Kuro added. "Small round metal devices built into their heads, this will keep them loyal to Kakuzawa. Otherwise it'd most likely they'd turn on him too and go rogue."

"In order to combat his forces we've already prepared some new weapons." The head operative informed them. "We've built Vector Attack Craft, capable of producing their own large vectors used for movement and attack. They are also outfitted with a vector cancellation device that will protect them from the vectors of the Diclonius. We've also developed Vector Detection Goggles in order for our troops to visibly see them. They pick up on the ultra-low vibration of vectors and outline them. We also suggest outfitting your men with a higher power round. Any Diclonius can easily stop a 9mm round, and one with power such as Mariko may even be able to stop a .50 caliber round. However weight is only part of the factor, these clones will have slower vectors than most and therefor can not stop a higher velocity round. We've outfitted our men with Howa Type 89 rifles. A standard 5.56 round is sufficient for the job."

"Good, anything else?" The chairman asked.

"Yeah, I fought one of them before and found flash grenades and tear gas to be useful. If they can't see where the bullet comes from they can't stop it." Bando commented.

"So they can only defend against bullets if they know they're being shot at?" Kiyoko noted.

"Precisely, they have to rely upon their normal senses in order to locate their target." Kurama replied. "They can not use their vectors as a means of detection or 6th sense."

"Then that is something we will have to use in our favor. Now onto the matter of strategies we mean to employ." Tsuneyoshi moved on.

"My friend here is the admiral of a naval fleet under Saseba's command. He will offer us long range support from the seas." The head operative motioned to his friend.

"I will have 3 ships in Tokyo bay when the battle begins, we will be able to use long range attacks to thin out their forces well out of their range. It is also possible that they will invade from the sea, in which case we will be the first line of defense." The Fleet Commander told them of his position.

"Sir, I also suggest we employ the use of smoke bombs in the upcoming battle. If they can not see around them then that will work much to our favor." Mougan remarked, turning to the chairman. The Chairman nodded to him.

"I would also like to put more focus into investigations on Sparrow, the ghoul who attacked us last night." Shinohara came forth with.

"Special Class Shinohara, how is this going to help?" The Chairman inquired.

"A ghoul just happens to attack us when Kakuzawa's enemies are coming to the CCG for help? That can't be a coincidence. I believe this Sparrow ghoul may somehow be connected to Kakuzawa, perhaps even in his employ. Which means if we find her we may find Kakuzawa." The investigator answered.

"That sounds pretty plausible. Kakuzawa hiring ghouls to fight ghouls. Especially if he's backed into a corner like this." The CCG Director remarked.

"Very well, assist First Class Amon and Rank 1 Mado in this investigation." Tsuneyoshi ordered them.

"There's something else I found after doing some investigation of my own." Kuro spoke up. "You see, Kouta over here is not like normal ghouls. He was born human, and became a ghoul after having ghoul organs implanted into him."

"A human who became a ghoul?" Kiyoko responded in surprise and confusion.

"Yes, after an accident about 2 years ago he required immediate surgery. There was a girl who died in the same accident, and the doctor used her parts to do the transplants. However, I found he failed to ask her next of kin, or even inform them for that matter. That's a pretty serious malpractice, one that could result in him losing his job or reviving time in jail."

"Where are you going with this?" Lucy asked him, near demanding. Kuro fixed her sunglasses.

"A week after we came to Tokyo the doctor was found murdered in his home, a single bullet wound in his forehead." Everyone in that room stared at him in blank shock.

"Wait, are you telling me you think Kakuzawa had something to do with what happened to me?" Kouta stood up and asked from across the table. Kuro nodded silently, Kouta stared down and gritted his teeth. How could this be? Why would he do such a thing? So many question ran through Kouta's mind. The only thing he was sure of was that he was going to kill Kakuzawa.

"Kouta!" He suddenly heard Touka call out. He turned his head and looked over to her. "You're too angry, calm down." She told him. He noticed he had his fists balled on the table. He sat back down and began to regain himself.

"But why would he be involved in such a thing? What affiliation does he have with ghouls?" Iwao asked.

"I have no clue." Kuro told him. "But i'm fairly certain that he was somehow involved."

"We will find out in due time." Tsuneyoshi stated. "For now I think we've covered everything we need to. Let us dismiss this meeting. We will also help train you in preparation. Shinohara, please take our guests to the training room. I already have an instructor waiting." Shinohara nodded in response to his orders before standing up.

"Would those of you who are preparing to fight please follow me." He announced to the others.

"If you'll excuse me I must be getting back to my shop. I do ask my employees to stay however. Farewell." Yoshimura spoke up before he departed from the room. Shinohara lead the rest of the staff of Anteiku as well as Nana and Mariko out the door and led them to the floor below. The large training room was not far from the elevator. He opened the door to it to reveal a large room about the size of a school gymnasium. The walls were steel plated with large rivets between the plates. The walls were painted gray and the floor was all one large blue mat. There was a man already waiting in there, one that Kouta and Lucy both recognized. "Ah, Special Class Arima. You're going to be their instructor?" Shinohara asked. Arima nodded, his quinque Ixa alrady in hand.

"Yes, the Chairman asked this favor of me. Training begins now."

* * *

Kakuzawa waited in his office of his new hideout on the island. It was the most luxurious room on the isalnd, the floor was marble and the walls were painted a light blue. There was a large window behind his desk too that allowed him to see into his base of operations. The double doors on the other end of the room from his desk opened up and his assistant stepped inside. Sparrow approached his desk and stood there only a few feet away from him. "Sir, apologies on last night's failure. I have no one to blame for this other than myself." She reported to him in her same emotionless voice.

"Don't worry about it, you're more use to me alive and you wouldn't have lasted in a fight against Arima." Kakuzawa leveled with her. "I have hired new help, you'll be getting a co-worker from now on. Here's his file." He pushed a manila folder on his desk forward to her. She stepped forward and picked it up, opening it up and reading it right there. She was silent for a moment.

"I see." Was all she said. Kakuzawa spun his chair around to look out the window.

"I've tasked him with going to fetch Lucy for me. With any luck he'll return with her and I can put off this invasion until Lebensborn II is complete." He smiled evilly. "Soon it will all come together, my beautiful new world." He looked out the window to the room where thousands of clones were developing in tubes filled with a glowing green liquid. In only a few months his master army would be complete.

* * *

An hour after leaving everyone to train with Arima, Shinohara came back into the CCG training room. "So, how's it going?" He asked as he stepped in. He gave a surprised look when he saw everyone.

"They need more practice." Arima informed him as he fixed his own glasses. Throughout the room everyone else lay defeated. Nishiki was upside down with his face against the mat and his torso against a wall. Enji was face down and unconscious, Kaya not far away from him but face up while out cold. The three Diclonius girls were laying in a pile, both Nana and Mariko were unconcious as well. Lucy was on the bottom in too much pain to move or lift the other two off her. Kouta and Touka were both beaten up and had their legs tied up in one another's in an intricate pretzel lock. Both of them were trying to break free but their struggling was of no use.

"Hay, can't you untie us at least?!" Kouta shouted at Arima.

"No, get yourself out of it." Arima told Kouta as he began to walk away.

"Why you!" Touka yelled in response. She and Kouta both got back to trying to undo the knot as Shinohara just watched the whole scene in disbelief.

A short while later they were all sitting against the walls in one of the corners of the room. Everyone had regained consciousness but were still beaten and bruised. Most of them wore defeated looks save for Kouta, Lucy, and Touka who looked rather irritated instead. "Sorry about that, Arima can be pretty rough sometimes." Shinohara apologized as he came with water bottle for everybody. He started handing them out to everyone one by one.

"Man, I heard he was tough but I never imagined it'd be like this." Enji sighed.

"Yeah, he's regarded by most around here as the best investigator. Back during the One-Eyed Owl's attack 10 years ago he took him on all by himself and won."

"His name is Yoshimura." Touka told the investigator.

"Ah, right I never got his name. Thanks for that." He replied politely. "If you guys need anything don't be afraid to ask. We're allies now."

"Yeah, thanks." Nishiki replied. "We should probably be heading home though." He stood up and began to leave. The others all followed suit and left, except for Kouta and Lucy. She was headed out when she noticed Kouta was still sitting there looking down at the ground.

"Kouta, what's wrong?" She turned around and asked just as the last of their group departed.

"Special Class Shinohara, there's something I wanted to ask you in private." Kouta spoke up.

"Hmm, what is it?" Shinohara asked as he looked down at the young white haired boy.

"Did you know my uncle?" Kouta asked while still staring down at the ground. Shinohara was caught off guard by such a question, but soon gave him an answer.

"Yes, Special Class Hideki Yukari. He was actually my partner for awhile. My second one after Rank 1 Mado's father." Shinohara responded.

"What was he like?" Kouta asked. "I never really knew him." Shinohara smiled down at him.

"He was a good man, a family man more than anything. He would never kill a ghoul mother if her children were nearby. He valued his family more than anything and wouldn't take others away in such a manner. I think if he could see what we're doing here today he'd be proud. Humans and ghouls learning to co-exist. I think he'd be proud of you too for being part of it." Kouta smiled a little after hearing that.

"I'm glad, he sounds like I would have liked him." Shinohara nodded down at him, Lucy stood in the background and smiled down at Kouta. He stood up and walked over to her side. "Come on Lucy, we should be getting back home too." She nodded at him and the two of them walked out the room to depart the building. Kouta felt warm and happy knowing his uncle was such a good man. He wished that he could be here to see him now.

* * *

Later that night, Amon was walking back to his apartment in another part of the city. Word had spread quickly around the office and other branch departments of the meeting between the CCG leaders and ghouls, as well as the talk of a new breed of horned girls. Amon had very mixed feelings on the matter. Deep down he knew they were doing the right thing, attempting to get along and co-exist. But he also still carried with him his hatred for their kind. Ever since his childhood he had hated ghouls. He wasn't sure if he could ever entirely forgive them. Ghouls had taken a lot from him in his life, though the same could be said vise versa for the ghouls now allying with the CCG. The whole situation was a confusing mess for everyone, and Amon was torn between what he felt and what he knew was right. His thoughts were interrupted when he heard someone else approaching. Amon was taking a back alley shortcut home to where he lived. So as of now he was alone. Hearing someone approach now made him instinctively think he was about to be attacked. He spun around to see a familiar figure approaching. Kurama had followed him here and now made his presence known. "You, I remember you from the apartment." Amon stated as he saw Kurama.

"Yes, my name is Kurama. I'm the former Director of the research facility Kakuzawa ran. I know who you are too First Class Kouratrou Amon." He stated blankly. "I've come here because I need to ask you something. Are the CCG going to keep their word in not hurting the ghouls?" Amon was surprised to hear him asked this.

"No, the Chairman is not the type to go back on his word about anything. I would trust him." Amon answered.

"I see." Kurama fixed his glasses. "I only ask because I do not intend to allow Lucy to live after this is over." Amon suddenly looked very surprised. "Make not mistake, this is mostly her doing. She was the original Diclonius, their queen if you will. All Silpeit Diclonii were caused by her. I intend to make her pay for her actions."

"Even if she's trying to make up for them herself?" Amon retorted. Kurama nodded.

"She's killed too many people to allow her to live. Simply put, the kill count of the One-Eyed Owl is nothing compared to her's." Amon turned his head, no longer able to look at Kurama.

"Is that so?" He asked balling his fists. "I think that's pretty underhanded of you, but I won't tell anyone of this if what you said is true."

"Don't worry, it is." Kurama began to depart the direction he came as Amon continued on. Little did the two of them realize that they were not alone. A figure watched from the rooftops above, hearing everything that went on below. Kouta stared down at the spot where the two of them met, a bored expression on his face.

"The plot thickens." He commented.

* * *

Tsukiyama opened the door to his apartment. The lights were all off inside as he entered, just as he left it. It was a very elegant and decorated apartment. Tsukiyama appreciated the finer things in life, and his living space was a sign of that. There were many paintings decorating the walls, vases with flowers on most of the elegant tables. An imported rug sat in the middle of the living room. He flicked the lights on to light up his high class apartment. He smiled to himself as he stepped in the living room, which he noticed felt rather drafty. He looked to see one of the windows was wide open.

"Strange, I don't remember leaving a window open." He said to himself.

"You didn't." He heard someone else in his apartment. He spun around as soon as he heard it to see Kouta sitting on his couch. "I let myself in, hope you don't mind."

"Ah, Monsieur Kouta. I had no idea you were coming over. I would have tidied up a bit more if I had." He greeted the boy with a smile of his face, hiding his true intentions. "Shall I prepare some tea?"

"Don't bother, i;m only here to talk for a bit." Kouta told him. Tsukiyama went over and sat down on the couch across from him.

"About what?" He asked. "Is it about your little meeting today with the CCG?"

"No, it's about someone else. Kurama, one of the people I was living with in that apartment for awhile." Kouta began. "I just found out he intends to kill Lucy after this battle is all over."

"I see, and you came to ask to take care of this rogue for you right?"

"No." Kouta responded emotionlessly. "I don't want to cause fighting among us before the battle even begins. No, I have a plan but I need your help."

"Oh." Tsukiyama suddenly sounded very interested. "Help with what."

"Tsukiyama, I want you to help me with some special training."


	20. Family Reunion

It was a quite afternoon at Anteiku, business was slow and there were currently only three employees in the shop. Touka, Nishiki, and Lucy were all gathered in the shop doing various activities. Lucy was sweeping the floor while Touka took inventory and made sure they were up to par with their supplies. Nishiki was just lazing around on a wall, trying to avoid work. Yoshimura was out on business with Yomo, he had to inform him of the events that happened with the CCG. Yomo refused to attend believing that Arima, who took his sister's life, might be there. Uta and Tsukiyama were to be informed too so he would be gone for the day. Enji and Kaya were supposed to be in charge but the two of them had to leave to do a supply run. So now it was just the three employees in the lone coffee shop in the 20th ward. "Hey Nishiki, why don't you stop lazing around and do some work?" Touka ordered him.

"Aww come on Touka, there's nothing to do." He retorted lazily. Touka just glared at him.

"Lucy, you've been cleaning the place long enough. Give Nishiki the broom." Touka told her. Lucy went over and handed the broom to Nishiki.

"Come on, don't do this to me Lucy." he protested as he took the broom. "Touka was the one who gave you and Kouta the same bed."

"Like she'd complain about that." Touka commented. Lucy shot her an angry glare from across the room. Nishiki chuckled behind her, which she noticed. There was a loud bang as the metallic trash can by the door suddenly tipped over, the trash inside spilled all over the place.

"Uh oh, looks like you need to clean that up." Lucy noticed.

"Hey, no fair! You did that!" He realized.

"Maybe." She replied ambiguously. Nishiki grunted and started put the trash back in the can, some coffee from cups spilled out however and he would have to mop it back up.

"Man, I can't believe that Kouta called off today. He almost never does that." Nishiki complained as he picked up the trash.

"He said he wanted to get some extra training in today." Lucy informed them. "Must be getting ready for the upcoming battle."

"Yeah, he's really taking this seriously." Touka noted solemnly. "I guess you two will be going back to Kamakura after that huh?"

"That's the plan." Lucy answered. She chose to keep what Kouta had told her a secret, better to not worry anyone that Kouta was in his own dilemma. He hadn't said anymore to her about where he planned to go after this was all over. She didn't care where they went though, as long as they could be together. She would prefer with her friends either at Maple Inn or Anteiku, but being close to Kouta came first. There was nothing she wanted more than that.

"Does that mean you're going back to sharing separate beds or is that going to be a permanent thing?" Nishiki asked. The trash can suddenly fell over again and the garbage was all over the ground once more. "Hey, what's the big idea?!" He yelled in retort.

"You should really be more careful." Lucy told him. He grumbled to himself as he put the trash back at a quicker pace this time, tired of doing it twice. After he put everything back and he placed the lid back on the can. Touka went and grabbed a rag and began to clean the counter. Lucy went over to a wall and began to laze like Nishiki just was. He grunted as he saw her taking his position. The door to the shop then opened and the bell rang. Nishiki quickly turned around to greet the young man that had just stepped inside. The boy looked around the shop a bit, his expression making it seem like he really didn't want to be there.

"Hello, welcome to Anteiku. Can I get you anything?" Nishiki greeted him as he stepped in. Touka and Lucy paid no mind to the guest. He looked at the two of them then to Nishiki.

"No, you really can't." He answered. Touka's head popped up when she heard that voice. She looked over to the boy with wide eyes.

"Ayato..." She spoke softly as she saw her brother for the first time in many years. Lucy looked over to him too, realizing just who he was.

"Hey Touka, do you know this guy?" Nishiki asked.

"Yes, he's my brother." She replied as she came out from behind the counter and went over to him. "Ayato, what are you doing back here?"

"What, surprised to see me?" He asked with a small grin.

"Well the last time I saw you, you said you hated me and everyone here and that you'd never return." She reminded him.

"Yeah, well i'm not here to see you." He regarded her coldly. He turned his body to now be facing Lucy. "You, you're coming with me."

"Why the hell would I do that?" She scoffed.

"I'm not asking you, i'm telling you." He responded without any emotion.

"What's all this about?" Touka demanded.

"Come on sis, do I really have to spell it out for you? A man named Kakuzawa hired me to take her back to him. He told me about everything that's been going on." Touka's jaw dropped after he explained things to her.

"Ayato, how could you?" She asked in shock.

"How could _you?_" He shot back at her. "You traitor, you've allied yourselves with the CCG. After everything they did, our mom and dad, you go and get all buddy buddy with them. You disgust me." He pushed past her and Nishiki, who was with all his strength restraining himself from decking Ayato right then and there. "Now come with me, i'm not going to ask again." He went to grab her but suddenly felt something grab him and stop him. Something took hold of his wrist, and he instantly knew it was one of Lucy's vectors. She gave a powerful twist. His arm broke and shifted into a twisted, unnatural shape. He yelled in pain as she viciously broke his arm.

"I'm not going anywhere." She stated as he fell to his knees. He glared back up at her, his eyes now in their kakugan state. His unleashed his kagune, the same type of ukaku as Touka. They crystallized and sent out a barrage of crystal shards. They all broke or split up a couple feet in front of Lucy, as if she was protected by a barrier. "I can stop or deflect any bullet, you think that can hurt me?" She taunted.

"Ayato, please!" Touka pleaded with him to no effect. Instead in the blink of an eye he lunged forward and was on the other side of Lucy. He swept her off her feet and she fell face first against the ground. Ayato stood back up.

"You might be pretty powerful with those vectors of yours, but without them you're useless in a fight. You have no experience in actual hand to hand combat." Ayato told her and she started to get back up. "I on the other hand..." He delivered a swift and hard kick into her ribs and sent her back on the ground farther away. "Have plenty!" He went to kick her again but right as he swung his foot forward he felt her vectors grab him again. She made him miss and used the momentum of his foot to lift him upside down in the air. Once he was she used the rest of her vectors to punch him and send him flying hard into the wall behind the counter. Glass jars broke and coffee beans went flying everywhere as Ayato made contact with them. He fell straight down against the wall, hitting his head against the ground.

"If you weren't Touka's brother I would have ripped all of your limbs off already." Lucy stated as she stood back up. Ayato jumped over the counter and stood to face her, his kakugan eyes narrowed.

"Don't underestimate me!" He shouted at her. He rushed at her again. She thought of him as a fool and sent out her vectors to grab him. This time he heard them and jumped over them, his knee made contact with Lucy's left cheek and she fell back. He ran in to finish her off only to have a table thrown at him from his right side. he fell to the ground and rolled, quickly getting back on his feet. "Like throwing things do you?" He asked as he grabbed another small round table. He threw it at her only for her to split it down the middle. She looked rather anamused as he threw a second table at her. She sliced it up again before it could hit her and Ayato came in right behind it with another sliding sweep. She grabbed his leg this time however and stopped him dead in his tracks.

"Do you really think i'd fall for the same thing twi-" He cut her off when twisted his body at the waist, kicking her in the head with his other leg while he was still on the ground. She flew into a table and it landed on the ground with her. She tried to get herself back up but this time she was grabbed. Ayato grabbed her right arm and held it above her as she lay face down on the floor.

"The boss told me about that power of yours, and that if you put up to much of a struggle to make you feel pain since you can't use your vectors when you're in pain. So how about I return the favor?" He used his foot and pushed in against her elbow. There was a loud snap as her arm broke.

"GAAHHH!" Luch shouted in pain at having her arm broken.

"And just for good measure." He stomped on the back of her ribs on her right side and broke them too.

"YAAAAHHHHHH!" Lucy shouted even louder this time.

"Now then..." Ayato was suddenly punched in the face before he could say anything else. He went flying back away from Lucy as Nishiki decked him. Ayato hit the wall again, he sat up glaring at Nishiki, who's eyes were now in their ghoul state as well.

"You little brat, you're really starting to piss me off!" Nishiki scolded him. Ayato stood back up and faced Nishiki. Ayato lunged at him, using his ukaku to give him speed. He jabbed right for Nishiki who fell backwards. He used his bikaku tail to catch him and brought his legs back. Using both his tail and his legs together in a spring motion Nishiki kicked Ayato up into the ceiling and through to the second floor. "Touka, you call someone for help. I'll deal with Ayato." He turend his head back to tell her. Touka nodded and pulled out a cell phone. Nishiki jumped through the hole he just made in the ceiling to go find Ayato. Touka dialed the number given to her by the CCG if they ever need to call upon them. The phone rang twice before a woman answered.

"CCG emergency line, what's the emergency?" She asked.

"This is the Anteiku, we're under attack and need some assitance." Touka told her in a rather calm voice given the situation.

"One moment." The woman responded. Touka could hear a computer clicking in the background. "The 20th ward ghouls correct? Do you know who it is attacking?"

"He's my brother, Ayato Kirishima."

"Alright, please wait one more moment." Touka heard some more typing. "Special Class Investigator Shinohara has agreed to offer his assistance, he'll be over as soon as he can."

"Thank you." Touka hung up the phone after that. While still a dove Shinohara was at least good for his word, she knew that he would definitely come.

* * *

Shinohara had not headed right out however. He had be forwarded the details about the attack on Anteiku and decided to take a detour when he heard the name. He had never even gotten Touka's last name, just Touka. If he had he would have explained some things to her, but now that would have to wait. He headed down to the CCG's lab division to pick up some help before stopping at Anteiku. There was someone he had to see. He made his way through the halls of the CCG's lab division until he came upon a small office room. When he stepped in all the lights were off but one. There was a small lamp illuminating the desk where a man was working. "What is it? I'm very busy." He asked as if being intruded upon.

"There's a situation in the 20th ward. I'd like you to come with me." Shinohara told the man.

"Why, why would you need to bring me along?" The man asked.

"There's a situation going down in a small coffee shop, a girl called in saying her brother was attacking them. Their names are Touka and Ayato Kirishima." The man's head riased up and he put the pencil down on the desk.

"Alright, give me a moment to get my things."

* * *

Nishiki landed on the second floor of Anteiku. He looked up to see Ayato had hit the ceiling there too but had now disappeared. Nishiki looked around to try and find the boy. Ayato rushed in behind Nishiki, trying to get in a surprise attack. Nishiki grinned and grabbed Ayato's right leg between the fork in his tail. Nishiki threw Ayato through a wall and he landed in the broom closet. Nishiki stepped over and stood in front of the doorway. He was stuck sitting in the empty mop bucket, glaring up at the older boy. "Well, looks like i'll be taking out the trash today." Nishiki commented with a smile. Ayato scowled at him and grabbed something. He threw a handful of a powdered cleaning substance into Nishiki's eyes. Nishiki yelled in pain as the powder stung his eyes and he was unable to open them. Ayato got out of the bucket and kneed Nishiki right in the solar plexus. Nishiki fell back against a wall and Ayato kicked him through it. Nishiki landed in the break room right by the small coffee table. He began to lift himself up using it. Ayato had stepped into the room already and jumped up in the air. He landed on Nishiki and kicked him into the table, which broke into two pieces as he was slammed down onto it. Nishiki lay there on the wreckage beaten and bruised. Ayato was standing on top of him, looking down at him. "I always hated that ugly thing." He commented about the table as she stepped off of the unconscious Nishiki.

Back downstairs, Touka had gotten the injured Lucy up against a wall. Lucy's breathing was quick and heavy as she was in an immense amount of pain. She attempted to stand but quickly had to sit back down. "Hey, take it easy. You have a broken arm and a few broken ribs."

"Really, you think?" Lucy replied dryly while panting. Ayato jumped back down the hole Nishiki made and rejoined the two of them on the ground floor. He turned around and started walking over to them.

"Now then, how about you quit making this so hard on yourself and just come with me already." Ayato instructed Lucy. Touka moved in his way and stood between the two of them, ready to take on her own brother. "Touka, what do you think you're doing?"

"Stopping you." She told him. "I can't let you do this, you're not going to take Lucy. Come back to us Ayato."

"Why, so I can join the rest of you human lovers?" He asked. "How weak, trying to blend yourselves in with their lot. We should just put them in their place."

"And where exactly is that?" She asked.

"As cattle in pens." Ayato explained. "They are inferior to us and to the Diclonius. Once Kakuzawa wipes out their pathetic nations he's going to round them all up into little cages for them to live their lives as food stock for the ghouls." Touka looked very shocked after he had explained all this to her. Ayato and Kakuzawa were going to use the human population as cattle, just a means for ghouls to continue existing in this world after Kakuzawa got his way. Touka gritted her teeth at her younger brother.

"I'm not going to let you do that Ayato." She told him as her eyes turned black and her kagune came out. Ayato stared at her, unmoved by her intention to fight him herself.

"You're not going to stop me either." He replied. The two of them rushed in at each other. They clashed in the middle, their hands meeting and pushing against one another in a power struggle as they each tried to overpower the other. "Because you're weak!" Ayato suddenly moved his hands away and grabbed her wrists. He threw her over his head and towards the ground on the other side of him. She hit the ground with a loud thud as Ayato threw her. She got back on her feet in a flash however and glared at him. "Your time at Anteiku has made you weak. You're trying to be friends with the humans instead of hunting them like you should be."

"We'll just see about that." She commented in a harsh tone. Touka flew threw the air and kicked at Ayato. He moved his head out of the way to dodge it. When Touka landed he threw a left cross punch which she dodged. Touka also dodged when he threw a right punch at her the same way. Ayato then bent his knees and backflipped. He tried to backflip kick her. He made contact this time, but she blocked it with her forearms. Once he flipped and landed on the ground he lunged at her. He swung low and decked her right in the stomach. Touka had the wind knocked out of her by his force as he dragged her along with him. She fell backwards and tumbled against the ground. She lay there on her hands and knees and had to catch her breath for a moment. But Ayato didn't let up, he ran in and kicked her right in the head. Her head snapped up and blood spurted out as he kicked her. She fell against the floor of the coffee shop, still conscious but unable to move.

"What did I tell you?" He asked as he picked her up by his uniform. "You're weak!" He threw her up into the ceiling, making a hole in which she got stuck in. Ayato used his kagune wings for lift and upper cut her into the next floor. Touka went through the ceiling and floor and went up to the middle of the hallway above. Ayato was lifted above her and brought both fists above his head and balled them together. He brought his fists down and slammed her back down through the floor again, taking it with her this time. Touka landed on top of the small pile of rubble from the floor and lay there on her back. Ayato landed on the ground near her. Touka began to get up off the pile and got on one knee. "Give it up, that weak and dried up kagune of yours can never beat me. You're weak, just like father." Touka panted twice before answering him.

"You're wrong." She told him. "You're wrong, about everything and especially about dad. He raised you better than this."

"And look where it got him. Just another casualty of the killing machine that is the CCG." He replied. "They don't care about you, and i'm willing to be after this is all over and they use you, they're going to come here and slaughter you all."

"They won't." Touka denied. "They're bastards yes, but they're not as cold as you."

"I'm just being realistic, you realize this too don't you?" He turned his head to ask Lucy, who was still sitting up against the wall. "Humans don't deserve this world, we should take it from them. I know you know this too." Lucy just glared over at him.

"No, you're wrong." Touka answered instead. "Lucy's not like that anymore."

"No, he's right." Lucy corrected her. Touka looked over to her in surprise. "I don't give a damn about my species, but I still think it would be better if all of the humans in this world died. After everything i've been put through, all the pain they caused me... but I won't do it. Because being all by myself is hell. Plus, Kouta would never forgive me if I did, and he's the one person I never want to hate me. So I won't help you, no matter what." Ayato stared at her, giving her a disappointed look from across the room.

"I wasn't really asking whether you _want_ to help us or not. I was ordering you to come with me. Now we're leaving. He turend and took a step forward to her. Touka finally managed to stand up, her knees weak and shaking as she did so.

"No... i'm not letting you leave with her." Touka interjected. Ayato stopped in his tracks and sighed. He spun around right fast and wound his fist back

"Why don't you just wake up Touka?!" He scolded and moved in to punch her. Touka winced as he was about to hit her directly. Before he could jab at her however something stopped him. He felt a firm hand grab him arm at the end of his bicep on the opposite side of his elbow. He was stopped there pre-swing before he could attack her. Touka opened her eyes and when she say who had intervened her heart skipped a a good beat or two.

"That's enough..." Ayato head a familiar voice say, one that he had not heard in a long time. He turned his head around to look up at the man holding him back. A face he had not seen in years. "Ayato." Lucy looked at the man and how they were reacting and she began to put it together in her head.

"Father..." Touka spoke softly after seeing her father for the first time in years. The two siblings both stared at him in shock, thinking he was dead all these years only to have him now standing there before them. After the initial shock wore off Ayato turned his head away from him.

"You..." He said in a very low. voice. He shrugged his arm to get out of his father's grip, then turned around threw a punch with his left arm. "You bastard!" Ayato cursed. Arata stepped back and moved his head to avoid the punch. Ayato threw another punch with his right arm this time and his father did the same to avoid it. "You've been alive this whole time?" Ayato kept throwing punches and Arata kept dodging. Eventually he caught one of Ayato's punches and took hold of him. Ayato glared at his father, who just looked down at his son unmoved.

"It was to protect you." Arata told him. "The CCG was hot on my case and close to finding me. I left with the attention of luring the CCG right to me so that they would not find you two. I let myself get captured in order to protect my children." Ayato gritted his teeth and broke free once more.

"So why didn't you just run away?! Find some place else to live away from them?" Ayato shouted at him.

"What good would that have done? It only would have aroused more suspicion and we all would have been caught and killed." His father clarified for him.

"Then we would have killed them, all of them! They're humans, they're weaker than us!" Arata shook his head in shame.

"You're lost son, our place is not to lord over them."

"Oh, and I suppose you'd want me to be friends with them too?" Ayato scoffed. "Why did they even let you live?"

"They put me to work for them, I helped them develop weapons in their labs." Arata explained.

"You helped them?!" Ayato repeated in sheer disbelief.

"It's not like I was given much of a choice." Arata rolled up his right sleeve to reveal a thick metal cuff placed around his wrist. "This cuff is filled with a deadly neurotoxin, if it ever entered my bloodstream i'd be dead within seconds. The CCG put this on me as a leash of sorts. If I ever disobey them or step out of line, they can remotely activate it and i'll die." His two children both stared at him in shock after he had revealed this to them.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner." They two Kirishima children and Lucy all looked towards the door to see Shinohara had finally arrived.

"Special Class Shinohara." Touka greeted him in surprise.

"I never learned your name was Kirishima until earlier today. Had I know that I would have explained this to you by now." Shinohara explained to her. Ayato glared and gritted his teeth at the investigator.

"So you've become a their dog, is that it?" Ayato demanded. He then rushed in at his father. "And I bet you want me to do the same!" He went to deck Arata, but before he could do so he received a swift uppercut into his stomach. Ayato fell to his knees after his father had punched him.

"I never in a millions years though i'd ever hit my own children. But you're sister's right, you can't be allowed to continue doing these things. Whether you want to help us is up to you or not, but I can't allow you to hurt so many people." Arata explained to the boy. Ayato stayed there on his knees, silent for a moment. The boy then began to softly cry. He looked up at his father with a tear stricken face.

"But why... would you hit your only son?" Ayato questioned with grief. Arata was stunned as he saw his son's reaction.

"Ayato... I..." Ayato grinned. Quick as a flash he jumped up and kneed his father in the stomach, catching him off guard.

"I can't believe you actually fell for a trick like that." Ayato taunted and he jumped in the air again. He let his kagune back out and got ready to strike. Arata held up his arms to block the attack. Before he could attack however someone else jumped in between them and took hold of Ayato's throat. He made a hacking noise as he airway was constricted. He only caught a glimpse of white hair before he was slammed on his back against the hard wood floor. Everyone else in the room looked surprised to see Kouta suddenly appear out of nowhere. Ayato coughed a couple times on the ground before sitting up and rubbing his throat.

"Who the hell are you?" Ayato demanded with a rougher voice. Kouta didn't respond to him. He instead looked over to see Touka injured and sitting on the floor. Then he looked over to Lucy to see her clutching her arm that was clearly broken.

"Did you hurt them?" Kouta asked him.

"Yeah, so what?" Ayato retorted, now standing up but still rubbing his throat. "Just who the hell do you think you are?"

"I should be asking you the same punk." Kouta replied dryly. Ayato grunted and gave him a fierce look.

"Ayato, please! Stop this." Touka pleaded with him.

"Ayato? So, you're Touka's brother." Kouta realized.

"Yeah." Ayato sent a side kick at Kouta. "I'm the strong one!" Kouta caught him by the ankle and stopped him. Ayato looked surprised for a second before Kouta swept his other foot and sent him to the ground. Ayato got back on his feet quickly and stood to face his opponent. But much to his surprise, when he got back up Kouta suddenly vanished.

"You are Touka's one and only brother." Ayato snapped his head around quick to see Kouta was standing behind him back to back. "So I won't kill you." Ayato spun to his Kouta in the ribs with his right elbow. Kouta had the same idea however and was quicker. He hit Ayato in the side of the head with his left elbow first, causing him to stumble forward. "But i'm not going to allow you to just walk away after hurting my friends."

"Tch." Ayato scoffed. He turned around and faced Kouta with his ukaku now hardened. Kouta sent out his two upper rinkaku and pierced both of Ayato's crystallized wings. Kouta lifted him up and sent him crashing into the ceiling above. Ayato retracted his kagune and landed on his feet on the floor below. He lunged at Kouta again, bringing his kagune back out. Kouta was still quicker than him however, and delivered a combination of a knee to the stomach and uppercut to the solar plexus. Ayato hunched over and Kouta brought all four of his rinkaku above his head. He brought them all down Ayato in a powerful downward attack that sent him to the ground and kept him there. Ayato's body twitched in pain as he lie there face down. He turned his head to the side and panted heavily. "D-damn you." He cursed. Kouta retracted his kagune back into his body. "Why not just kill me already? Are you really so weak you have to end it here?"

"I don't think you understand." Kouta told him.

"Understand what?" Ayato replied with heavy breaths.

"I meant it literally..." Kouta grabbed Ayato by the back of his collar and waist of his pants. "When I said I wasn't going to let you walk away." Kouta hoisted the other boy above his head and face up. Kouta then suddenly threw him down and lifted his own knee up. Ayato's spine made hard contact with Kouta's knee and there was a sharp crack. Ayato let out a loud cry of pain as his spine was broken. He tumbled of Kouta's knee and landed on the ground face down, his eyes wide with pain as he nearly passed out from it.

"Y-you... bastard." He swore very softly and weak. Everyone else just stared in disbeleif and borderline horror at the brutality Kouta inflected on Ayato. Kouta stared down at him with an apathetic look before turning away and walking over to Lucy. He knelt down in front of her as she leaned against the wall.

"Are you ok? Where did he hurt you?" Kouta asked her with calm concern.

"My arm and ribs on that side are broken." She told him.

"I can help." Shinohara offered as he walked over to her. He opened out his suit case and pulled out a small first aid kit. He opened it up to reveal it had a syringe with 3 cartridges to fit inside it. They were all filled with a bright red spotty liquid. He flicked the needle after loading it up.

"What's that?" Lucy asked out of breath.

"A temporary Rc Cell enhancer. It'll give you the regenerative effects ghouls have for a short time." He held the needle up to her upper arm. "Hold still." He instructed her. Kouta held her hand on the other side as Shinohara was about to inject her. This helped comfort her for the time. The needle didn't sting that much as she was used to receiving injections at the research facility. It was over in a matter of seconds and Shinohara carefully pulled the syringe back out of her arm after it was done. He ejected the cartridge and put in another one. "Alright, one more." He said as he went to give inject this one into her ribs. The second one was more painful, but not by much. It was over with just as quickly and it was already slowly starting to take affect. Shinohara ejected the second cartridge and placed everything back. The syringe in the first aid kit and the kit back in his suitcase. Touka had finally manged to stand up by now and stood right by her father.

"Father... all these years and you've been alive this whole time." She uttered still in a state of shock. Arata looked down at her with a sad expression.

"Touka, I..." The bell on the door to the shop rang as the front door was opened everyone looked over to see Sparrow standing there, he ukaku wings already hardened.

"Shit!" Shinohara shouted as he lunged across the room and took cover behind the counter. Sparrow fired her ukaku shards across the whole room. Kouta pulled down and table and used it as cover for him and Lucy. She turned her head away as the shards impacted the table. Arata took hold of his daughter and shielded her with his body. Shards darted across the whole shop as Sparrow shot a wide barrage. She began to step forward as she shot too. She kept firing until she was in front of Ayato, then she ceased fire. She bent down and picked him up, carrying him across her shoulders.

"The hell are you doing here?" He asked weakly.

"You're more use to us alive, i'm here to bring you back." She turned away to leave. Kouta looked across the room to see Shinohara was still behind cover behind the counter. Arat had shielded his daughter and revealed something else. Kouta looked at him in amazement.

"He's a kakjua." Kouta noted at seeing the Rc cell armor across his body. He heard footsteps as Sparrow began to leave the shop. Arata turned his head to get a look at her but did not dare to stop shielding his daughter. Instead Kouta jumped out from behind his cover. "Sparrow!" He called. She stopped in her tracks and turned her head. She was staring at him through her peripheral vision, even with her mask on. "Why are you doing this? Why are you helping Kakuzawa?" She stared at him silently for a moment, tension building between the two of them. She turned her head away from him.

"We will meet again, when that time comes I will reveal everything to you." She told him. Then without another word she stepped out of the shop and took Ayato with her. , Shinohara got out of cover after he heard the door close behind her. Arata finally let go of his daughter. Touka looked up at him, still in shock.

"Touka." Her father kept his hands on her. "I'm sorry for lying to you all these years and making you think that I was dead. But I was always thinking of you, and gave up my freedom in order to protect you. I'm so sorry, I wish there was some other way."

"Dad..." She started to tear up. "It's ok, because you're alive and I can see you again." She pulled him into a hug and buried her face into him as she stared to cry. Arata smiled down at her. He felt someone grab his wrist, he looked over to see Shinohara had grabbed his right wrist with the cuff on it. Shinohara had a key in his hand and put it into a slot in the cuff. He turned it and the cuff clicked open. He removed it from Arata's wrist and tossed it to the ground.

"Special Class, what is this?" Arata asked stunned.

"Your freedom." Shinohara replied. "You're free to go, you've done plenty for us. Beisdes, it wouldn't be much of an allience if we kept out friend's family as prisoners." He smiled at Arata. Arata was caught off guard by this sudden act but managed to smile back at Shinohara.

"Thank you Shinohara. But if it's alright I would like to continue working at the CCG." Shinohara and Touka both gave him surprised looks when they heard that. "If the CCG is finally starting to work with ghouls, then I want to help in any way I can. If that would be ok with you Touka." He looked back down at her smiling.

"Sure, just..." She pulled him herself back into him. "Just don't leave me again." She pleaded, crying against him again. Arata put a comforting hand around her.

"Don't worry, I won't." He promised. Touka continued to hold onto her father and cry from happiness. Relief after finding out he was alive this whole time. Kouta stared at them blankly and Lucy noticed this. She couldn't help but feel guilty, knowing that Kouta could never have a moment like this because she ripped his father away from him. She wished he could have a moment like this and meet his family again. But he couldn't, he had to watch them both die because of her. He would never see his father or his little sister alive ever again.

The door opened and the bell rang as Yoshimura returned with Yomo in tow. The old man had a smile on his face until he stepped in his shop. The place was a mess, coffee beans all over behind the counter, tables flipped over and broken, and there were two giant holes in the ceiling. Not only that but Touka was crying against a man he had never seen before.

"What happened here?" Yomo asked in disbelief.


	21. The Battle Begins

"Here's your coffee." Touka placed two cups of coffee on the table of one of Anteiku's loyal customers along with his friend.

"Thanks Touka." Hide smiled up at her. "What do you think Kaneki?" He asked his friend. Kaneki brought the small cup up to his mouth and took a sip.

"Ah, it's really good." He commented.

"Told you, Anteiku is the best place for coffee in the 20th ward." Hide reminded his friend. He then turned his head to Touka. "Sorry I haven't come by in awhile. I got caught up in school and you know how it goes." He explained apologetically.

"Oh don't worry about it, it's just nice to see you back here." She smiled down at him.

"Right, well I never introduced you two. This is my friend Ken Kaneki. Kaneki, this is Touka Kirishima. She's my usual waitress when I come here."

"Hi." Kaneki greeted her somewhat nervously. Touka was a little surprised to see Hide with someone who seemed to introverted but she smiled down at the boy anyway.

"Hello." She greeted him.

"So who are the two new employees?" Hide asked in a hush voice so that they wouldn't be heard. Touka leaned in close to whisper. She knew everyone else but Lucy could hear with their heightened senses anyway but she had to put on the act that they were being discrete.

"That girl over by the counter is Lucy." Touka informed him as he looked over to Lucy, who was wiping down the counted. "She's the only new one, the white haired boy is actually Kouta."

"What?" He almost lost control of his voice and that came out just a little louder than he would have liked. "What happened to Kouta?" Hide asking noticing Kouta now only now had snow white hair, but he now wore a more pissed off look. When Kouta used to work at Anteiku he was usually happy and nice. Now he seemed more distant and less sociable.

"Oh, some things just happened to him." Touka lied, deciding it was better to keep the truth from him. "But he came back about 5 months ago with Lucy. She started working here when he did."

"Oh, are they dating?" Hide asked.

"Not yet, we all think they should just make it official already." Touka let him in on.

"Oh, I see." He smiled a little. "Well it's nice seeing you again Touka, thanks for the coffee." He thanked her in a normal tone again.

"Any time." She replied before leaving to return to her duties. Once she was out of ear shot, which technically she wasn't since she was a ghoul, Hide leaned in and whispered over to his friend. "So what do you think of Touka, huh? She's cute right?" Kaneki blushed.

"Wh-what?" He stammered.

"Our waitress, what do you think of her?" Hide repeated.

"Well she seems nice... and I guess she is kinda cute." He manged to say while his face was bright red.

"Good, then i'll call her over and you can ask for her number."

"Wait, what?!" Kaneki blurted out.

"Excuse me, waitress!" Hide called out as he raised his hand. Kaneki began to panic as Touka walked over to their table.

"Yes, what is it?" She asked in a polite voice.

"My friend here would like to ask you something." He made a gesture towards Kaneki who's face was fire red.

"Well, I umm..." He stammered, feeling very nervous and embarrassed. "Was wondering... maybe... maybe, could I get your number?" His voice squeaked at the end, which only made him ever more embarrassed than he already was. Touka looked a little stunned at first but eventually scribbled something down on her pad she used to take orders with. She ripped the small page off and put it face down on the table next to Kaneki. She walked away as he picked it up. There written down was indeed her phone number. "It... it's her number." Kaneki said in amazement. His expression suddenly shifted into a warm, bubbly smile.

"See, I knew you could do it." Hide congratulated him. Their happy moment was short lived however. Before the feeling could even wear off sirens blazed all throughout the city. Everyone in the shop looked up from what they were doing when they heard the loud noises.

"Attention, Tokyo city is currently under a state of evacuation. Everyone please head for your nearest evacuation checkpoint." A woman's voice announced throughout the city.

"Huh, what's that all about?" Hide questioned.

"I dunno, but if they're evacuating the whole city it must be something big." Kaneki noted before standing up. "Come on, we should go." Hide stood up from his seat as well, both of them leaving their unfinished cups behind.

"Nice seeing you again, we'll be back some other time." Hide waved goodbye to the staff. Touka and Enji both smiled and waved back at them. The two friends walked down the sidewalk outside Anteiku, following the crow of people already departing the city. Two black SUVs speed past them and stopped outside of the small coffee shop they were just in. After the rest of the few patrons had departed a man stepped out of the front SUV dressed in military combat gear. Hide turned his head around to notice the marking on the back of the vehicle. "Hey, is that the CCG?"

Hug?" Kaneki turned his head around to look. "Yeah, I think that is. What are the CCG doing at Anteiku?"

"I dunno..." Hide answered. "Do you think they might be ghouls?"

"What?" Kaneki blurted out in shock.

"Heh, maybe you got a ghoul's number." Hide joked. Kaneki decided to brush the idea off and the two of them headed for the nearest checkpoint. Back inside Anteiku, the bell on the front door rang as someone entered the shop after the evacuation call was given. The employees all looked over to see Amon standing there dressed in full CCG combat attire.

"Has it started?" Kouta asked him.

"Yes, our surveillance reports that Kakuzawa's forces have landed north of the city. They'll be coming in from that direction." Amon reported. "That battle for humanity's future has begun."

* * *

The two black SUVs headed for uptown Tokyo. The one in front was being driven by Akira Mado, Amon was in front with her. Kouta, Lucy, and Touka were scrunched up together in the back seat. Shinohara was driving the one following in their convoy, with Juuzou on the passenger side. Enji, Nishiki, and Kaya were in the back of that vehicle. It was rather silent during the ride in both vehicles, the tension of the upcoming battle weighing heavily on all of them. "Where's the old man?" Kouta asked in the front vehicle, breaking the tension there.

"He's already on the front lines. Your friends Uta, Yomo, and The Gourmet are there also." Amon briefed him.

"Tsukiyama isn't really our friend." Touka replied.

"He's certainly a lively one." Mado remarked. "We're agreeing to clear him of his crimes if he helps us in this battle."

"Keep an eye on him." Kouta told her.

"Hey, have you ever been in a war before?" Juuzou asked Shinohara in the back vehicle.

"An actual war, no. But I was there during the last attcak of the One-Eyed, er... I mean that attack 10 years ago." HE caught himself from saying their aliases. He thought of it as rather rude to do so.

"Ah! This is going to be so fun!" Juuzou smiled and kicked his feet up and down.

"How far north are we going?" Enji asked from the back of the car.

"Not too far, he landed closer to the city than we anticipated. His forces have already taken control of some of the upper sectors. But we're going to make sure it stops there." Shinohara replied.

"Was everyone evacuated in time?" Nishiki asked.

"Mhmm." Shinohara nodded. "We managed to evacuate the northern part by the skin of our teeth. Now the battle can begin." The front car took a sudden left turn at an intersection and Shinohara followed right behind them. They could now see a large gathering of soldiers right up ahead. They were in two different styles of uniforms, one for the CCG, one for Saseba. The first car stopped just outside of the small army of around 5,000 soldiers. Shinohara parked his car parallel with the first, both facing the curb at an angle. Everyone unbuckled their seatbelts and departed from the vehicles.

"This way." Amon instructed them. The trunk on the first car suddenly popped open. Everyone turned around to see Hinami had tagged along and hid in the trunk.

"Hinami, what are you doing here?" Kouta asked, surprised to see her.

"I wanna help too!" She declared. Hinami noticed Amon standing there and instantly recognized him. She would never forget the faces of the men there that day when her mother died. "You..." She regarded him coldly.

"So that's where you've been hiding." Amon realized. Hinami scowled at him.

"I can't forgive you for killing my mom, but I still wanna help fight with everyone." She told them.

"Hinami, it's dangerous." Kouta told her.

"I know." She shot back almost instantly. "But I wanna help you onee-chan, all of you guys." Kouta was silent for a moment. He sighed.

"Alright Hinami. Just stay close to us and don't do anything stupid." She smiled after he allowed her to join them.

"I won't!" She replied. They all then followed Amon and Mado, the two of them blazing a path and pushing through the crowd of soldier as they made their way to the front of the lines. Then eventually manged to get through everyone and make it to the front lines. They were all on one of the major roads in the center of Toyko, this is where they were anticipating Kakuzawa's forces to be. Up front to lead the army was the CCG chairman, wearing a long grey trench coat. His son, the director, was dressed in full CCG combat gear. The CCG and Saseba soldiers were both armed with Howa Type 89 rifles, as well and thick black goggles with metal and electronics around the head. These were the vector detection goggles Saseba had invented. Standing in front was also the group everyone from Kamakura had arrived with. Bando was dressed in his own combat uniform and armed with an FN Scar-H rifle instead. his also had a custom holographic red dot optic and horizontal foregrip attacked to the front. Agent Kuro was dressed in her usual attire, the clear goggles over her black shades and a Type 89 rifle in her hands as well. Nana was dressed in her favorite black dress, and Mariko in her lolita dress. Neither of them were covering up their horns, no point to it now. Nana waved at her friends as she saw them. Kurama was also standing there with them, holding his own rifle and wearing vector detection goggles. The two heads of the CCG were also joined by Special Class Arima and First Class Kiyoko Yukari. Arima already had his quinque Ixa out, and Kiyoko with her Brynhildr. Just as they were told, Yoshimura, Yomo, Uta, and Tsukiyama were waiting there as well.

"Good, we're all here." The Chairman greeted them as the rest of their forces arrived.

"Aunt Kiyoko, you're here too?" Kouta asked when he saw her there.

"Yes, after I was informed of everything during my time in the infirmary I asked to be on the front lines." She explained to him. "It's been awhile, I haven't seen you since the raid 3 months ago." Kouta was silent and unsure of how to respond to that. What she said was true, the two of them hadn't met after that fateful day. The last time they met, they were fated enemies. Now they were no longer enemies, but the tension still remained. Kouta just stared up at her wordlessly. She suddenly bent down and hugged her nephew. "Kouta, i'm so proud of you." She told him right in his ear. "I'm so proud that it was you who could help humans and ghouls come to an understanding. A seemingly impossible task, but you did it. I'm so relieved we don't have to fight anymore." Kouta's aunt then let go of him and smiled down at her nephew. He focus shifted to Yoshimura and he smile disappeared. "But that doesn't mean I can forgive you for what you did." Yoshimura didn't respond to her, there was nothing that could be said to help. "Same goes for you." She turned her attention to Lucy. "Yuka told me everything about you, and about what you did to my niece and her father. But I will still fight alongside the two of you. For my family."

"Aunt Kiyoko." Kouta called to her, making her turn her head back to him once more. "I'm... glad we don't have to fight to." He told her smiling. She smiled back at him and nodded.

"Now then, let us prepare for battle." Tsuneyoshi interjected. He walked past them and stood to face the large gathering of soldiers. "Troops! Today we face the greatest threat mankind has ever seen. One so wicked and evil that it would turn the bitterest of enemies into allies. This man, Kakuzawa, would see to the extermination of every last man, woman, and child from this planet. Only to have his Diclonii replace us. But we will not go gentle into that good night. We will not go down without a fight. He will not succeed here today. We will show him what humanity is truly made of. We will send him to hell, or drag him down with us! Are you with me?" There was a loud unanimous war cry from the army in front of him, all of them cheering along. This was the first and only of defense. If Tokyo fell it would be a crippling blow to Japan. For Kakuzawa it would be like finishing off injured prey. After Japan fell he would focus his attacks to the next major world powers. He'd send his forces overseas to conquer China, South Korea, and Indonesia. After they fell he'd move on up to Russia. Over the Pacific he'd send more Diclonii to take down America and Canada. Soon the whole world would fall under his armies. Like a plague of darkness wiping out all intelligent life in its path. That's why he had to be stopped here and now. They'd cut this cancer out before it spreads. Tsuneyoshi turned around 180 degrees and faced down the street where they knew Kakuzawa's forces would most certainly come from. His arms were crossed as he stood there, a general ready for battle.

"I guess it's finally time." Touka noted.

"This seems like it's going to be fun." Uta commented. They all faced down that main road and waited. Any minute now the first wave of forces would come marching down and the battle would officially commence. Before that happened though, two soldiers came running through the lines on the left side. They were wearing less bulky gear than the rest for they were recon scouts. Sent ahead to survey the approaching enemy forces and gather intelligence before the battle began. They had hurried their way back to the front lines to relay their information to their forces.

"Ah, our recon crew." Tsuneyoshi greeted them. "What have you gathered?" The two men took a moment to catch their breath.

"Sir, the enemy forces are in possession of Vector Attack Crafts." One of the men reported. There was a mix of shock and frustration among the soldiers and those on the front lines. Some surprised to learn that the enemy was using their own technology against them, others upset and frustrated because of it. The CCG Chairman stood there unmoved, scrunching his face as if he was planning his next move carefully.

"Do we know how many they are in possession of?" He asked.

"We've counted 20 sir." The scout informed him.

"So, just as many as us then is it?" The Chairman began to ponder again. "What would the outcome be if we were to use ours to stalemate theirs?"

"In theory, two VACs wouldn't be able to affect each other at all due to the vector cancellation field." The head operative reported. "Besides that, their vectors are far more powerful than that of any Diclonius. They'll be able to stop artillery fire."

"Sir." Kuro called to her commander. He looked to her to see she had her rifle aimed down the street. He looked that direction to see the enemy forces had finally arrived. There was a large concentration of clone Diclonii walking their way, each one wearing a grey full body jumpsuit and metal helmets the facility tried to use to nullify their effects. It had no efect in that regard however, and now was simply a means of head protection for his forces. Brhind the first few lines of them was a large Vector Attack craft. It was a oblong shaped object that created and used four vectors to walk on. It kept up at pace with the rest of the forces as they drew closer. The forces of humanity all raised up their weapons and aimed down at the enemy.

"Damn, at that range it'll protect the Diclonii for our bullets as well." The head operative noticed. "We only have one chance, someone get me a radio." He ordered. A Saseba soldier came running over with a radio in hand. He held the bulk of it as the operative took the speaker part. "We'll have to as our naval forces to attack long distance. A missile from above just might work." Tsuneyoshi held up his hand to stop him.

"No... i've got this." He told the man. The operative looked at him confused as the old man took a couple steps forward. "There's only one way to deal with these things." He grabbed the front of his grey coat and ripped it off himself, revealing a kakuja quinque underneath. It covered most of his body, except for his head. "That old fashioned way!"

"Kakuja armor?" Yoshimura noticed in surprise. The Chairman jumped about 3 feet in the air and brought his fist above, raising his elbow above his head as he prepared to strike straight down. When he landed he punched the ground at full strength and it began to shake. A large crask tore through the middle of the street and the force of his impact created a shock wave that headed right for the enemy forces. Windows cracks on the buildings along the street as the force drew closer. The clone Diclonii could only sit there and watch. The shock wave ripped right through their forces, sending many of them flying off into the air or into the buildings nearby. The street split in two as the VAC could no longer keep its balance. It hit the ground hard and shut down, too damaged to get back up. A door on the side opened as clone Diclonii began to exit the now useless vehicle. The human and ghoul forces all stood their, all of their mouth open and their jaws dropped. The only exception was Arima, who still lost his normally composed self and was rather surprised.

"Damn, I gotta get me one of those." Bando commented.

"Let us not delay, strike with everything you've got!" The chairman cried out before running headfirst into battle. The last two Diclonii exited the attack craft, the last one being helped out. They were the first of his victims. He was upon them in the blink of an eye. Before either one had time to react he spun and backfisted the last one with his left hand. He grabbed the head of the other with his right and slammed her head into the VAC, all in one swift fluid motion. Three more close to them turned back to see the commotion. Tsuneyoshi was upon them just as fast. The first was knocked down with a right punch, then the second revived a left punch, and the third a right elbow. One by one the old chairman use his martial arts skills to take out the Diclonii army while the initial shock of his strength was starting to wear off on the others.

"Well, come on. We can't just let one old man take on a whole army by himself." Kouta said to the others. He went forward to go join him in battle but was stopped when Yoshimura put a hand on his shoulder.

"Wait, he does have the right idea." Yoshimura told Kouta. "The others can't take down one of those machines, so we should take care of that. Let's split up and focus on taking those things down."

"Sounds like a plan." Enji agreed. Yoshimura nodded and his kakuja mask took form. The ghouls all split up throughout the city to take down the enemy's attack crafts. Kiyoko took a step forward and turned towards the rest of the forces.

"Well come on then, we might be allies but lets see to it we have the higher kill count at the end of today!" She raised her Brynhildr to rally the troops, all of them cheering along. She and Arima ran head, leading the full on charage of the thousands of soldiers and investigators. The battle for humanity's future had officially begun.

* * *

Elsewhere in the city, a single VAC was on its way farther into the city. A group of cloned Diclonii piloted the large machine, marching its way down through the abandoned streets of Tokyo. This made it very quite, only the sound was the one the VAC made as it moved. There was nothing on the radar around them, the whole city had been evacuated and there were no enemy forces in the area to be seen. Making the large metropolis feel like an eerie ghost town. After a long moment of silence there was finally a blip on the radar. One target was approaching at incredibly fast speeds. The Diclonii brought up a camera feed to see the One-Eyed Owl flying straight for them. They sent out a single enormous vector from the attack craft to swat him like a fly. The owl was much faster however, sipping underneath the palm of the massive hand as it swat at him. He flipped himself around so that he was headed feet first for the vector craft. He spun himself around multiple times, ad as he made contact with the craft he used his kagune to cut through and spin himself inside. He landed inside the metal machine with a thud, all the Diclonii turning around to see him sanding there. He looked up with his one showing kakugan as he stood there surrounded. They were about to lash at him with their own vectors, but once more were too slow. He sent out kagune shards in every direction, his far too powerful for them to stop. They ripped the Diclonii girls to shreds in a matter of seconds. Thereafter lay nothing but the torn up bodies of the girls and the destroyed computer systems. Without its power or systems the Vector Attack Craft shook a bit before the vectors ceased and it fell to the ground. Yoshimura flew out of the hole he created and landed on the ground safely as the large machine came crashing down.

Enji was stalking his own VAC elsewhere in the city. He watched from the rooftops as a large solo VAC made its way down the streets of Tokyo. He waited as his prey moved in closer to him. When it was directly below him, it lashed out and attempted to strike him. Having sensed him all along but acting clueless as a ruse. Enji grinned as he saw a large fist form above him. He dived as the fist came down, throwing himself at the VAC. "Don't underestimate the Great Devil Ape." He told it., his bikaku tail coming out and his eyes turning into ghoul eyes. His enhanced his tail until it was large enough to span over the width of the attack craft. His slammed his tail down across it, nearly splitting the large machine in two. It hit the ground hard from the force of the bikaku above. Enji landed in front of the machine while it struggled to keep its vectors active. It once more sent out the attack vector to crush Enji under its palm. It didn't even make it half way down before the machine shut down became nothing more than a pile of scrap metal.

Touka and Nishiki both rushed in together against the same attack craft. It sent out a large single arm straight for the two of them. Touka flew into the air using her wings and Nishiki side stepped the attack and kept on heading for the large machine. Touka hovered in air and fired her ukaku shards upon the metal beast. It sent its attack vector up to block the attack, but by doing so was unable to stop Nishiki from rushing in under it. He unleashed his own bikaku tail and sent it straight up into the machine multiple times until eventually it was able to penetrate all the way through. The two tips of the split end of his tail could be seen sticking out atop the attack craft. He retracted his tail and ran out from under it as its vector disappeared and it came crashing down onto the ground.

Another was making a turn down a corner only to find Hinami waiting there in the middle of the street. _All right, i'm going to do this! For onee-chan!_ She thought to herself as she got ready. She unleashed her two part koukaku and rinkaku kagune. Inheriting one from each of her parents. The Vector Attack Craft send its offensive vector high up into the air and off at an angle. Hinami anticipated for it to come down but this was not the case. It slapped the back of a billboard atop a building above her, sending it down towards her. Hinami used her koukaku part to shield herself, coming out unscathed from the falling billboard. When she was sure it was over she came out of her shield, only to find the Vector Attack Craft was attacking, the massive vector swinging for her. Hinami froze in that moment, completely terrified. She would have died then and there if someone didn't come sliding in and save her. The vector missed as her guardian slid in and continued to slide towards the craft. Hinami looked behind her to see Shinohara had saved her, his Arata armor activated as he slide underneath the machine.

"Hit it!" He told her as they began to pass under it. Hinami did just that, using her two rinaku to repeatedly puncture the attack craft from underneath. Shinohara slid all the way under it and stood up about 5 meters away from the back end, still carrying the girl in his arms. The vector craft jerked twice before sparking violently and crashing to the ground. Shinohara sighed with relief and let Hinami down back on her own feet. "That was a close one, I got there just in the nick of time."

"Yeah, thanks for saving me mister." She showed her gratitude.

"Shinohara." He introduced himself. "Special Class Shinohara." He offered his hand to her smiling. She was surprised by his kindness at first, but shook his hand and made a new friend.

Kouta ran along the rooftops of Tokyo, jumping from building to building. He was headed to take down a Vector Attack Craft of his own. He knew right where it was too, he could track the sound. He jumped off the edge of a roof and high above one of the vector attack crafts. He sent out his four rinkaku tentacles and aimed them all at the machine. He pierced it with all four, then kept stabbing into and through it a few more times until eventually in collapsed under him. He bent down and ripped a chunk of the armor off, jumping inside to finish off any Diclonii inside. There were no survivors though, all the Diclonii piloting the craft now lie dead, blood decorating the interior of the vehicle. "All dead." Kouta noted to himself. "Not much of a war machine." One of the computer's suddenly turned on inside the machine, a blue screen appeared with white text in the center that read "[Audio Only]"

"Well you'll have to forgive me, but they aren't my own design." Kouta heard a sinister and familiar vocie speak to him. He scowled at the screen, even though he could not been seen either.

"Kakuzawa." Kouta regarded him scornfully.

"It's been a long time Kouta. Ever since you ruined my years of planning and ran off the with Lucy."

"Not long enough." Kouta responded coldly. "Where are you hiding you sick son of a bitch?"

"Hiding? Who's hiding?" Kakuzawa mocked. "I'm in an abandoned factory in the 5th ward. Come find me, i'll be waiting." With that the computer shut off and the screen went black once more. Kouta glared at it for a second before exiting out the hole he made, off to gather some more people to confront Kakuzawa for the last time.

* * *

The three Diclonius girls Lucy, Nana, and Mariko were all fighting off a battalion of cloned Diclonii. Mariko was sending out her vectors in all different directions, taking out her clones as soon as they came within range. Nana was using her speed to her advantage. She was much faster than the Mariko clones, zipping between their many but slow vectors. One of the clones sent out all of her vectors at Lucy. She fell back to the ground and landed on one hand to dodge them, the clone aiming just a bit to high. Lucy sent out a single vector and sliced the clone straight up. Blood shot out all over as the clone was cut in two. Another came in at her from behind, out of Lucy's range. She sent out a few of her vectors to punch Lucy. Lucy grabbed onto the wrists of them with her own vectors and pulled the Diclonius within range. The clone came flying in at Lucy uncontrollably, and when she was in range Lucy sliced off her head. That training with Arima was really starting to pay off. Just then, Nana landed right behind and, and Mariko stepped back. The three of them were now facing back to back, shoulder to shoulder as the enemy forces surrounded them.

"They've got us surrounded." Mariko told the other two girls.

"Yeah, you think?" Lucy replied sarcastically, a small grin on her face. They were severely outnumbered and completely surrounded. The first clone took a step forward to the enemy girls. There was a flash of black and the girl split in two. The other clones all looked to see what was going on, and the ones closest had no time to react before they were slashed up. Amon had entered the battle, splitting his quinque Kura into two lighter blades. His swift speed was too much for the nearby Diclonii to handle, many of them falling to his blades. His partner Mado landed in on the other side of the three Diclonii girls. She began taking out clones with her two quinques, one a koukaku type and the other a bikaku whip. A few clones sent their vectors out at her, which she was able to see with her vector detection goggles. She whipped at their legs with a low attack and made them fall to the ground in pain. There she finished them off, spinning her koukaku sword to slash them on the ground. Another one attacked from behind, unleashing a multitude of vectors at her. She turned around to intercept, only to see a the girl's head suddenly fly off. Lucy had used her own vectors to decapitate the clone. "Nice of you to join us." Lucy greeted the investigators.

"Hope there's room for one more." They heard a voice call from above. They looked up to the sky to see Yoshimura coming down at them. He took out a group of clones he landed on, a small shock wave was sent around him. He went out ukaku shards all around him, cutting down even more of them. Together they had cut down a large number of the enemy forces, but another group of around 20 of them were approaching. They all stood together to face the swarm of enemies. Another figure joined, landing on the ground behind the Diclonius forces. The clones all turend back to see Kouta on the ground there. He looked up at them with a face full of rage.

"You're all in my way!" He shouted, unleashing his kagune upon all of them. He tore through the mindless forces with ease, taking down the whole group by himself with speed beyond theirs. After he knocked them all aside or killed them he stood back up and walked over to his friends, as well as the two investigators. "We need to move." He told the others. "I-"

"Kouta, look out!" Lucy shouted. He turned back to see three of the clones had gotten back up and were now sending their vectors at him. He was about to counter attack when an unseen figure beat him to it. Suddenly a pink bikaku kagune in the shape of a rat tail pierced through all three of the clones. They coughed up blood and let out one last noise of pain before they all perished. The tail retracted through the now lifeless bodies and back towards the user. They all looked up to see a man dressed in a black trench coat, and black rimmed hat. He was also wearing a black mask with a long beak, resembling that of a medieval plague doctor. Two of them recognized this man. "Doctor?" Kouta was shocked to see him there.

"Ah, good doctor, is that you?" Yoshimura called up to him. He was standing on the edge of a small single floor restaurant.

"Yes, hello my old friend." Dr. Kaimei shouted back down to his old comrade.

"Is that... the Plague Doctor?" Amon asked in shock at seeing him there.

"You know him?" Mado asked.

"Your father told me about him. He was one of your father's first targets. But he just disappeared, vanished without a trace decades ago." Amon explained to her. The doctor jumped down from the roof and landed on the sidewalk below. When he descended it could be seen that he was also wearing black gloves.

"I heard about the attack on the city prior to my coming here. Decided I ought to help out with the new alliance." He explained to them. "I was born here after all. I can't allow some ruffian to come in and wreck the place."

"Speaking of, we need to move. I know where Kakuzawa is." Kouta told the others.

"What?!" Amon responded. "How? Where is he?"

"He told me himself over a communication channel from inside one his attack crafts. He's in an abandoned factory in the 5th ward."

"Abandoned factory?" Mado repeated. "I only know of one of those, that must be where we'll find him." Amon put two fingers up to his right ear to active his ear piece communicator.

"This is First Class Koutarou Amon, we've located Kakuzawa and are requesting additional forces." He called out to anyone who could hear.

"Special Class Shinohara here, I have Juuzou and First Class Yukari with me. We'll come to give backup. What's the location."

"Abandoned factory, 5th ward." Amon informed him.

"Roger that, we'll be there. Out." Shinohara responded.

"What's that? You guys finally found the bastard?" Amon heard Bando's voice come in now. "Me and the agent will be over there too. See you guys then."

"Tres Bien!" Tsukiyama shouted over to communication channel so loud the others around Amon could hear. "I'll round up the rest of the ghouls and we'll meet you over there. I want to meet this mad man for myself. Au revior!" Kouta scrunched his face in irritation at Tsukiyama's antics. Amon lowered his hand from his ear piece and faced the others.

"Looks like we'll have our own raid force. Let's get to it."

"Right!" The others all replied in unison. The group of them headed out and hurried for the 5th ward.

* * *

"We're heading out." Shinohara informed the other two investigators near him. "The others have located Kakuzawa's position, we're headed for an abandoned factory in the 5th ward. That's where he's hiding."

"What? They found him?" Kiyoko asked.

"Seems so. We're going to head there and meet up with some of our forces."

"Oh boy, this is going to be fun!" Juuzou exclaimed.

"Special Class Shinohara!" One of the soldiers in the squad behind the investigators called out. They all turned to see a single Vector Attack Craft headed right for them. There was a group of about 5 soldeirs firing at it with no effect. The massive and powerful vectors deflected the bullets as if they were nothing as it drew closer to the men.

"Kill the thing!" One of the men shooting at it yelled out. It was no use. In one swing, the massive offensive vector swatted at the men on the street below and slashed them all in half. Blood spurted out like a fountain from their lower halves before their legs and waists fell to the ground. The three investigators could only watch in horror as this machine killed their men.

"Seems like we might be running a little late." Shinohara commented. Another five soldiers began backing up from the approaching death machine. Then out of nowhere, a figure leaped from across the roof tops as soared above the machine. Shinohara looked up into the sky to recognize Arata in his kakuja armor. Arata landed atop the machine and sent in his right ukaku wing, twisting it into a corkscrew shape as it penetrated into the attack craft. Its vectors could not protect it from the inside. Dozens of ukaku shards could be seen shooting out from the inside of the craft as Arata unleashed his kagune upon them. The machine fidgeted violently as it was being shot up from the inside out. After only a few short seconds there was a small explosion inside the craft. Arata retracted his wing and flew off of it. The entire machine then exploded in a fireball. Fire and smoke shot straight up into the sky as the Diclonius machine was destroyed. The 5 soldiers all cheered as they were saved. Arata landed behind them, over by the three investigators. "Good work Arata, thanks for the save." Shinohara thanked him.

"Don't worry about it." Arata replied as he retracted his kakju mask, but still had the rest of the armor active.

"We've located Kakuzawa, we're heading to his location now. Are you coming along?" Shinohara asked.

"You've found him?" Arata was surprised. "Well then, it's time to end this."

"Mr. Kirishima sir!" One of the soldiers approached him.

"Hm?" He turned back to the soldier.

"We've just received word that our forces are suffering heavy losses in the 16th ward not far from here. The forces there are being led by your son, Ayato." Arata scowled.

"Go." He told Shinohara, then turning to face him. "You take care of Kakuzawa. Ayato is my son, I will take responsibility here." Shinohara nodded at him before he along with Juuzou and Kiyoko headed off the other direction, hurrying as fast as they could to the 5th ward.

* * *

"This is the place." Mado said to the others as thes seven of them were gathered in front of the old abandoned brick factory. They were silent as they all stared up at the old decrepit building. This was it, this would be the deciding factor in the battle. A confrontation of the deranged leader of the Diclonius army and the allied forces of the CCG and ghouls of the 20th ward. The weight of their actions here weighed heavily upon the seven of them as they stood outside.

"Bonjour!" Tsukiyama could be heard calling out to the left. They all looked to see him approaching with the rest of the staff of Anteiku, along with Uta and Yomo.

"Good, you're all here." Amon greeted them. "Now we're just waiting on the others."

"Ah, who else is coming?" Tsukiyama asked.

"Special Class Shinohara, his partner Rank 2 Juuzou Suzuya, and First Class Yukari." Amon answered. "Along with the rest of the group from Kamakura." Just then, almost as if on cue, a black SUV rolled up onto the street behind them and parked right along side the curb. Shinohara stepped out of the driver's seat, with Juuzou as his passenger and Kiyoko in the back. The three investigators all approached the others in front of the factory. "Speak of the devil."

"Waiting for us, eh Amon?" Shinohara greeted him with a smile. "Are we all ready?"

"Almost, we're just waiting on-" There was a crash as a Humvee drove trough the chainlink metal fence at the edge of the parking lot to the left of them, then a blam as it drove straight into the building. The group of them all ran to the corner to see the front half of the vehicle through the side of the building. The Humvee's rear lights came on as it backed up a few feet, leaving a large hole where it crashed into the building. A cloud of dust came out from the hole, trailing behind the Humvee as it backed up. The engine stopped and Bando stepped out of the driver's side.

"See, what'd I tell ya? Perfect entrance." He seemed to be talking to someone. Agent Kuro stepped out of the other side of the car, along with Kurama who was riding in the back. The two of them coughed from the dust cloud.

"Yes, but you ruined our element of surprise." Kuro told him.

"Heh, who needs that? It's no fun that way." He saw the others all standing there, seeming shocked by his loud entrance. "Looks like the gang's all here."

"Yes, now we are." Amon replied. "You do know the front door was unlocked right?"

"Ah screw that!" Bando shouted as he made his way towards the entrance he created. "I wanna do this shit right, barging in and taking out the enemy head on."

"Bando, wait!" Agent Kuro tried to stop him. "It's not safe, it might be a trap." Bando didn't listen and walked right into the factory. He was in a large and open room, a place for line workers to assemble parts by hand. He looked around the room, the lights were on meaning that someone was inside.

"Looks clear to me." He replied as the whole raid team stepped inside the building. "Come on, I want to find where this guy is hiding."

"Who's hiding?" They heard a voice call from above. They all looked up to see few meters away and above them was a cat walk, and standing right there was Kakuzawa. Next to him sat Sparrow, he head reaching below the safety bar on the side of the catwalk. Everyone in that room scowled up at him, all but Bando who grinned in anticipation for a fight.

"So that's him?" Shinohara asked.

"Yeah..." Kouta replied with hate in his voice. "Kakuzwa."

"Kouta, the ghoul boy who destroyed my old facility and completely ruined my life's work." Kakuzawa greeted him. "How have you been?"

"Been looking for you." He replied. "So I want to know, what in your sick and twisted mind really made you think you could get away with this?"

"All in good time, but first I want to ask you something." Kakuzawa grinned. "Would you like to know where Ghouls came from?"

* * *

"Retreat! Retreat!" A soldier commanded as a wave of troops all ran away from the enemy forces. There was a grouping of enemy forces about equal in numbers to their own, but these forces were being led by Ayato Kirishima. Ayato fired his kagune shards at some of the men as the tried to run away, piercing into their backs and cutting them down.

"What's the matter? Why are you running?" He asked them, shouting to be heard. He jumped in the air and used his ukaku wings to soar above them. He landed on the hood of a car in front of them. The men all stopped as he appeared in their path. "Things are just starting to get fun." His ukaku wings crystallized and the men all froze in fear. Before Ayato could fire, someone came from above and struck him. Two fists clumped together hit him over the head and sent him face first into the ground. He hit hard as he landed to the ground. Ayato slowly got up and looked up to see who had struck him. His father was standing above him, looking down behind his kakuja mask. Ayato grunted at seeing him there. Arata turend his head back to the men.

"Go, push through their forces that direction. Leave my son to me." He ordered them. The men were silent at first, still somewhat shocked by the miracle that had just saved them.

"All right, you heard him. Push through, we've still got a fight to win." The commanding officer repeated to his troops. They all ran back where the Diclonii girls were and began firing, starting to cut down their forces so they could move up. Arata looked back to his son, who was now standing on his feet and glaring at Arata.

"Ayato, i'm going to give you one last chance to stop this." His father told him.

"Just as weak as ever." Ayato replied. "I'm not giving into you. I'm going to see this through, and we're going to make this world what it really should be." Arata was silent for a moment.

"I see..." He let out his own wings. Though they were the same type as Ayato, as he and Touka had inherited it from him, Arata's were wider, and much longer in their wingspan. "Then you leave me no choice."

* * *

"What are you talking about?" Kouta demanded.

"You've been living with ghouls all this time, you became one of them and were forced to grow up in their society. Have you never once wondered where the first ghoul came from?" Kouta was silent and did not answer. Kakuzawa continued anyway. "The truth is ghouls were created by humans. Ironic how we created our own predator and advanced species. The reason I know this... the man who created the first ghoul and first kagune was my grandfather." Everyone below looked up at him, shocked at this sudden revelation. "He revealed all this to me on his death bed. You see, our family has been attempting Lebensborn for generations. My grandfather's attempt was to create the perfect genetic being. In doing so he accidentally discovered what we now know as Rc Cells. He attempted to create a being capable us using these previously untapped cells to the potential. He named the first child Adam, his own creation. It was a success, however he found some side effects. He found that the only sustainable nourishment for his new creation was human flesh. He decided that the only test for the success of these beings was to unleash them upon the general public. Thus the first ghouls were created an unleashed upon the world. So in a sense I am a god, it was my family who created you." Kakuzawa grinned evilly. Kouta gritted his teeth up at the mad man on the cat walk.

"Listen to yourself." Shinohara shouted up to him. "Didn't you just say it was your grandfather who created ghouls? You had nothing to do with it, yet you'd try to take credit as if they were your creation? Fine, if that's the way you feel." He raised up his large Demon Yamada knife up. "I have no choice but to place you as personally responsible for every murder committed by ghouls. The sentence for which will most certainly be death."

"Oh really? You think you can stop me?" Kakuzawa taunted him. "Are you aware of how many people can so easily be bought with money? Some even within the CCG." The investigators all suddenly looked shocked. "Oh come now, did you really think I wouldn't be keeping tabs on all of you? Especially you." He looked down at Kouta, his eyes full of malicious intent. "Even if I was not responsible for the creation of ghouls I was responsible for the creation of at least one one-eyed ghoul." Kouta's expression shifted to one of utter rage.

"What? You... that doctor... are you saying that was your doing?" Kouta deamnded, hardly able to hold back his rage.

"Yes..." Kakuzawa replied in a rather sinister voice. "That doctor was one of my contacts I was using to keep an eye on an old employee. He told me about your interesting dilemna, and I offered to pay him to transplant that girl's kagune into you. It was nothing more than a mere whim of my curiosity that you became what you are today. You are nothing more than my experiment." Kouta balled his fists and began to shake from anger.

"You... do you have any idea what you put me though? What kind of life i've had to live because of you?" Kouta responded. "I have been put through the worst kind of hell. I've been beaten, forced to eat other people, forced to live in fear of my friends finding out what I am, you... you had me tortured. By that sick doctor. All because you were curious?"

"Are you honestly so angry?" Kakuzawa chuckled. "You should be thanking me, I made you better. You have sense and abilities far beyond that of any normal human. You're part of a superior breed, you don't need to hide among them."

"DON'T GIVE ME YOUR BULLSHIT!" Kouta shot out and interrupted him. His left kakugan eye was now out and wide open in rage. "This is all your fault, all of this. You sick, twisted, perverted fuck. Yet you want me to thank you?"

"Not just that." He lowered he hand down to Kouta as if offering something to him. "I want you to join me. I want your help in Lebensborn II."

"Lebensborn II?" Kuro repeated. "Are you telling me that this invasion isn't all there is to it? You're planning something else?"

"Yes." Kakuzawa replied with a grin. "This time, i'm not going to have a clone breed with Lucy." He pointed to Kouta. "I want you to do that."

"What?" Kouta scowled at even more of his madness.

"Rather than simply creating a breed of Diclonius that can reproduce, i'm going to create a new breed of Diclonius. One with the abilities of both Diclonii and ghouls. I'll use that as a prototype, experimenting with the genetics until I can create the perfect Diclonius and Ghoul hybrid." He grinned evilly at his own twisted schemes.

"You were right." Shinohara spoke up. "This guy is completely out of his mind."

"I'll say, you're totally bonkers!" Juuzou shouted up to the catwalk. "And coming from me, that's saying something."

"Everyone sees through your shit Kakuzawa, so why can't you?" Kouta asked.

"So, you will not join me after all?" Kakuzawa frowned. "Fine, I have ways of forcing you." He faced down at his assistant. "Sparrow, capture Kouta and Lucy."

"What about the others?" She asked.

"Do with them what you wish. I have no use for any of them." He told her. "You disappointed me Kurama, I had very high expectations of you." Kurama gritted his teeth at his former employer. Sparrow slid off the catwalk and fell down to the floor below, landing on her feet below. She stood there silently and stared directly at Kouta.

"Is that the Sparrow that you said attacked you that night?" Kuro asked.

"Yes, that's her." Mado replied. Kouta and Sparrow stared each other down silently as he stood a few steps in front of the others.

"Last time we met, you said you'd explain everything to me. So before we start I want to know, why are you helping him?" Kouta asked her. "Is it because you feel like he's your creator because of what he said?"

"Not even close." She replied, her tone cold and without any feeling.

"Well, go on Sparrow." Kakuzawa told her. "Explain everything to him. They all have their masks off, so why don't you do the same?" Sparrow didn't directly reply to him. Instead she simply reached up with her right hand removed her mask. She let it fall to the ground as she revealed herself. When she did, Kouta's heart skipped a good two beats. He stared at her in a dumbfounded shock, his left eye reverting back to its normal state. He didn't know what to say. Lucy was equally as shocked right behind him. Her eyes widened as she saw this girl.

"What?... But how?" She questioned.

"No way..." Kiyoko stared in disbelief.

"What is it, who is that?" Touka asked Lucy as she was standing next to her. Nana looked to Lucy, unsure of what was going on then back at the other girl in front of Kouta. That's when it hit her.

"Wait, isn't that-"

"Kanae." Kouta spoke softly as he took a step closer to her. The ghouls all gasped at hearing that name, all of them knowing all too well the story behind the girl.

"Hello, brother." She greeted him for the first time in years with a small smile. Her right eye was a ghoul's kakugan.

"That's Kanae?" Touka was still unsure if this was really going on.

"But how?" Nishiki tried to find an answer.

"Who's that?" Amon asked.

"Kouta's little sister." Kiyoko explained, her tone sounding rather disheartened. "She was killed 9 years ago."

"But then, how is she here?" Mado asked surprise.

"Kanae, you're alive." Kouta began to smile with delight. "But how?"

"That is thanks to Kakuzawa's doing." She began to explain, her smile faded and her jaded tone returning. "After finding out about me he dug up my body and implanted my remains with a kagune. In a lab he was able to super enhance the regenerative factor it offers and was able to fully restore my body and mind. Bringing me back from the grave."

"My Lazarus if you will." Kakuzawa gloated.

"He told me everything. The truth about the girl that murdered me that night, that you survived, and that you not only befriended but fallen in love with my killer." Kanae looked over at Lucy with just a faint hint of anger in her eyes. "So that's why i'm helping him. To get back at you for betraying me."

"Betraying you? Is that what you think?" Kouta asked weakly.

"If I were in your position, I would have killed her the moment I found out. I would avenge you and father by taking her life. But you instead fell in love with her." She reprimanded him. "I'm surprised you wouldn't join us. Don't you want to fuck her?" Kouta looked both surprised and scared at her.

"Hey, why are you talking like that? Knock it off Kanae." He told her. She was unmoved by him.

"It's true isn't it? That's why you betrayed me for her? You want to fuck her." Kouta gasped at hearing his little sister talk like that. She wasn't Kanae anymore, she was nothing like he remembered. The childish and sometimes bratty little sister who still cared for her older brother was gone. She was now a more jaded and unfeeling girl. Her gaze was cold and she had shifted to hating him now. Kouta lowered his head.

"You... you're not Kanae."

"What are you saying? I am your sister. I was brought back from the dead and still have all the same memories." She explained. "I'm not one of his clones. I'm the real thing." Kouta was near crying at this point. He clenched his fists tight and stared down at the ground.

"All this time, all I wanted was to apologize to my little sister. To try and take back what I said. But you... you took that from me." He voice began to falter. "You bastard." He was a bit louder. He looked up at Kakuzawa with a look of hate through the tears on his face. "I'LL RIP YOUR GOD DAMN HEAD OFF!" Kouta's eye was already a kakugan, he was rrady to fight. He sent up all four of his rinkaku scales up to strike Kakuzawa. Kanae jumped in the air and blocked them with her own kagune.

The two of them stared back at each other with rage filled expressions, and like that brother and sister once close were forced into combat. This time they were bitter enemies.


	22. That Good Night

Ayato was flying down the street away from his father, Arata. Arata was in hot pursuit in his kakuja form. Ayato trued himself around and flew upside down. He crystallized his ukaku wings and fired at his father. The shards had no effect against his kakuja armor however. They bounced off as if they were regular bullets. Ayato grunted in frustration as he attack had no effect. Arata caught up and the two of them were only a couple feet apart in the air. The clashed, striking each other with their wings. Only to strike their kagunes together and fly past each other. They both went for it again, clashing their kagunes together in an attempt to strike down the other. The third time Ayato threw a punch at his father. Arata caught him by the wrist. He spun the boy around vertically and threw him onto the ground. Ayato landed on a red car below, partially smashing it. Ayato looked up after being tossed to the ground to see his father coming straight down at him. Ayato moved out of the way as Arata landed hard on the car and destroyed it even further. Ayato landed on his feet and faced Arata as he stood back up atop the smashed in roof of the vehicle. "Dam you old man." Ayato cursed him. "How could you do this to you own son?"

"I take no pleasure in doing this." Arata responded dryly. "But I can not allow my own son to continue on with such madness. I am your father, and it is my responsibility to punish you." Ayato glared at him.

"Don't you give me that crap!" He lunged at his father. He collided with Arata and the two of the locked hands as they struggled to overcome the other. Both trying to wrestle the other into submission. "You want me to go live among humans like the rest of you, but tell me something. How long do you think this peace will last? Do you think after this you and the CCG will just be buddy-buddy? Do you honestly believe that they care about anything other than themselves? They call us monsters but who do you think the real monster is?!" Ayato questioned him rather aggressively.

"You're right. Humans can be cruel and merciless. They preach peace and understanding while slaughtering not only our kind but themselves as well. Some single people would do both and think of it as just." Arata answered.

"Then why? Why help the same people that would just as quickly hunt you down and burn you at the stake?!" Ayato near yelled in fury.

"Because we have to try." Arata answered his son solemnly. "If we do not, this cycle of hatred will only continue on and on. We have to at least try to coexist with the humans, even if the odds are against us, even if we will ultimately fail. We will at least try to make peace in this dark and twisted world." Ayato made an angry noise and glared back at his father.

"You may be my dad, but you have a lot to learn about this world." Ayato reprimanded him.

"No my son. It is you who has much to learn!" He suddenly crossed Ayato's arms, the right one over the left. He kicked Ayato's left heel inwards and used the position of his arms to throw him sideways. Ayato flew through the air as he was thrown and landed against the back windshield of a bright red coupe, cracking it from the force of impact. He tried to sit back up but Arata was upon him quickly. Arata landed on the trunk of the car and kicked Ayato in through the windshield. Ayato went is ass first into the car, his upper body and legs still sticking out. Arata then pulled him out of the car with his right hand. Grabbing him by the collar and hoisting him into the air. He then struck the boy across the face with a right punch, then again with a backfist in a quick one-two motion. Arata then threw his son to the right and against a wall. Ayato slumped to the ground, then managed to get himself back up. Arata was already ready to attack again. Ayato received a swift right punch across his face then a left jab. Arata then grabbed the boy's head from behind with both hands, pulling him into a clinch. Arata delivered a swift knee up into Ayato's stomach that knocked the wind out of him. Arata let go and Ayato leaned up against the wall, his head hung over the other way as he tried to regain his breath.

"This ends now!" Arata shouted. Ayato saw the final blow coming. He received a palm strike to his chest and was pushed into the wall of the building. There was a hole made where he was forcibly slammed into the wall. Ayato fell down in a sitting up position against the crater partially into the building. Arata released his kakuja mask, allowing his true face to show as he stared down in disappointment at his son. A group of soldiers from the CCG suddenly came rushing onto the scene, rifles ready in their hands.

"Arata, sir! We're here to help." One of the soldiers reported.

"At ease men, i've already dealt with my son." He responded to the man, then looking back down at the injured Ayato. Ayato finally managed to beam back up at his father in hate.

"Are you gonna finish this already?" Ayato questioned. Arata kept looking down at his son with those judgmental eyes.

"No. You are still my son, and I will not kill you." He began to walk away from his son and to the soldiers. "Take him into custody, lock him up in Cochlea." The soldiers did as tehy were told and went to take Ayato into custody. They hand cuffed him and made sure to suppress his Rc Cell ability. The soldiers began to march him away and they passed Arata. The two exchanged glances one last time before Ayato was hauled off. Then there was some loud thuds. Everyone looked down the street the other direction, back towards where Ayato was apprehended. A Vector Attack Craft came around the corner 2 blocks ahead of them. The guards all felt a wave of panic as the war machine started heading their way. Arata narrowed his eyes and began to formulate a plan on how to take it down. Before he could enact one however, a black blur zipped by. Chairman Washuu began running past them and straight for the machine at speeds that could only be described as superhuman. The Vector Attack Craft sent out it's single attack vector, but the Chairman was far too fast. He slid under it and dodge it with ease, when he began to slide under the machine he put his hands on the sides of his head against the the ground. He pushed himself up and kicked up and through the machine. He launched like a missile and pierced straight through the machine. When he came out the other side he stopped his momentum by grabbing onto the edge of the whole he just made. He brought himself back down upon the machine in a different spot, this time elbowing it straight into the ground. The enhanced strength provided by his kakuja quinque made the craft slam straight to the ground and even crumple up to a small degree. Tsuneyoshi jumped off the now inactive machine and landed in front of it. His hands fell to his knees as he took a moment to catch his breath.

"Forgive me, i'm not quite as young and spry as I used to be." He called out to the others. They all just stared at him awkwardly.

_As he used to be? This guy just took down a VAC with his bare hands._ Arata thought to himself. After a few seconds the Chairman stood upright and walked over to his men.

"Arata, weren't you with Shinohara earlier?" He asked the ghoul.

"I was." Arata nodded. "But he and a few others left. They've managed to track Kakuzawa down and they've gone to face him."

"Is that so?" The Chairman was surprised to hear that, but also glad. "Then it all rests in their hands now. I can only hope for the best for them."

* * *

Kouta sent his kagune out at Kanae again. She zipped about in the air and was able to skillfully dodge them. She flew low and made a b-line right for her brother. Kouta blocked her attack as her ukaku curved in at him, using his own rinkaku. He pushed her back ad she hovered back a bit farther, still using her kagune to fly. She flew at him once more, and this time he parried, moving around her and switching positions. She tried again and he did the same thing, this time they were back where they started but back to back. Kanae turned to her left with her foot raised and kicked her brother in the back of the head. Kouta went towards the ground face first. He stood back up and wiped the blood from his mouth. Lucy gritted her teeth at seeing Kanae hurt her brother like that. She stepped forward to help, unleashing her vectors.

"No!" Kouta ordered her, holding his arm out to his side in a motion for her to stay back. "Stay out of this. This is something I have to take care of myself." He told her with a dead seriousness. Lucy wanted to say no and help him out, she didn't want to see him get hurt. But she ended up reluctantly agreeing in silence. Stepping back and allowing Kouta to take care of things himself. Kouta ran at Kanae and aimed his kagune at her. He sent all four out to strike her from different directions. Right before they she was about to dodge however they backed off. It was a farce as Kouta instead came in swinging his fists. He threw a right punch which she dodged, then a left which she also dodged in the opposite direction as the first. Kouta then spun to his right and used the back of his fist to attempt to strike her. Kanae ducked under his attack, Kouta kept at it though. He used the continued momentum of his spun to try and punch her with his left hand again. Kanae blocked this time, holding her forearm straight up to block took hold of his wrist and spun his arm. She spun it down and made a full rotation, pivoting at the shoulder. She then threw him at the wrist and went flying forward. Kouta flipped into the throw however, and managed to land on his feet in front of her. He kicked straight back at her with his right foot. Kanae dodged it as she went in for a spinning sweep kick, aiming for the leg Kouta was standing on. She swept it from under him and he fell to the ground. Kouta got back to his feet quickly, seeing that Kanae had backed off a few feet.

"I have been preparing nonstop for this day." She told him without any emotion. "You will not win." Kouta gritted his teeth and his jaded sister. He rushed towards her with his kagune. She shielded herself against all four of his kagune with her right wing. She swiped his kagune out of the way and flew at him, slashing him with her left wing. Blood shot out right above his stomach as he was slashed there. He bent over in pain and coughed up a bit more blood. Kanae turned around and slashed his back with her right wing this time. Kouta arched his back in response to the pain. Kanae kept at it. She hit him across the chest next, then across the lower back, in the left arm, and finally right above the back of his knee. Kouta fell to the ground after her swift barrage of attacks, his kagune retracted back into his body. Kanae was now standing to where his back was turned, between him and the rest of his allies. She had her back turned as her brother fell to the ground. "Just like that." She taunted dryly. Kouta sent out on of his lower rinkaku tentacles and whipped it at Kanae. She jumped and did a back flip through the air. She landed on Kouta's back, roughly slamming against him and forcing him totally to the ground. She stepped off her big brother and to his left. She stared down at the defeated Kouta, who lie there panting. "You should really be grateful brother, I don't have to let you live. We could use any ghoul we want for Lebensborn II. So be a good big brother and just stay there."

"No!" Hinami suddenly shouted out. Kanae looked over to see Hinami's rinkaku swiping horizontally. Kanae skillfully ducked under it, keeping herself a mere foot above the ground as the kagune passed over her. Kanae then stood back up to see the other girl had stepped forward, her eyes not ghoul eyes and her two kagune were out. "I won't let you hurt onee-chan!" Hinami told Kanae fiercely. Kanae stared back at the other girl with an apathetic look.

"How nice. It seems you found a replacement for me." She observed, feeling even more betrayal from her brother.

"No... it's not like that." Kouta told her weakly as he lie there.

"I was thinking about letting the rest of you live for taking care of my two targets. But now I think i'll kill you." She pointed to Hinami. Hinami glared back at Kanae. Kanae went to take a few steps closer, but she felt something grab her. Kouta managed to turn himself sideways and had his upper torso lifted off the ground. He grabbed hold of Kanae's left leg.

"No... damn it, don't you dare hurt my friends. You're still my little sister."

"Hmph." Kanae made a noise of disgust. She kicked back and up with her right leg, hitting Kouta in the face and causing him to release his grip. He fell to the ground once more. She began to walk closer to her new opponent, her ukaku wings still out. Hinami readied herself for a fight, glaring at Kanae. Before Hinami was about the make the first move however, someone's hand blocked her from above her to the right. She looked up to see Tsukiyama holding her back.

"Mr. Tsukiyama?" She asked confused.

"Now now Hinami, let's not do anything too rash here." He told her, waving his finger as he did so.

"Are you going to be my opponent instead, Shuu Tsukiyama?" Kanae asked.

"Oh my, you know who I am?" He asked smiling and holding his palm to his chest.

"Shuu Tsukiyama, alias 'The Gourmet'. Rank: S-Class, type: koukaku user, age: 21. Former owner of the ghoul restaurant MM." She recited to him perfectly.

"My, i'm honored." He replied.

"I told you I prepared for this. That included doing my homework on my opponents." She told him.

"Hmm, so it would seem. But here's a word of advise young mademoiselle, don't rely just on that." Tsukiyama advised her with a grin.

"What are you talking about?" Kanae narrowed her eyes at him. Tsukiyama chuckled to himself.

"Your brother means a lot to me as well. Do you really think i'd let him come to a fight like this without a trick up his sleeve?"

That was when the stoic Kanae lost her composure. She was suddenly surprised and tried to turn around to her brother. It was too late that. A pair of pincers suddenly caught Kanae at the waist, and for the second time she was chopped in two. The others all watched in shock and horror at seeing something suddenly kill Kanae like that. Kanae's upper half spun through the air, and she got one glimpse of what it was that killed her. Coming out of Kouta's back she saw what looked like two lower halves of a centipede. The left side of his face was now covered by a half kakuja mask. The human side still exposed hat a pure white eye, and an expression of utter rage. his single Kakugan was now moved to the center of his face. _I see, so that's what you've become._ Kanae thought to herself in hey dying moments. _You monster._ With that she closed her eyes one last time and died before even hitting the ground. The other member's of Kouta's team all just stared at him, save for Tsukiyama who had helped him.

"Eyepatch, he's a..." Amon tired to find the words but was too stunned.

"A kakuja." Shinohara finished. "It doesn't look like a complete transformation, but that's definitely a kakuja."

"What?! Since when is he a kakuja?" Kakuzawa shouted from the catwalk. After he shouted that, Kouta sent one of his centipede tails up at the catwalk. While he did not hit Kakuzawa directly, Kouta did break the section of the catwalk Kakuzawa was on. Kakuzawa came crashing down with the metal catwalk he was standing on. There was a loud crash as man and metal came crashing to floor below. Kakuzawa lived through it, however his left leg was broken. Below the knee it was twisted outwards as he was face down on the ground. He grunted in pain and tried to get himself up. He managed to get himself on his rear to sit, but when he did so he saw a horrifying sight. Kouta was now standing over him, giving Kakuzawa a looked of both madness and rage. Before Kakuzawa could begin to beg for his life, Kouta made good on his promise. He threw Kakuzawa back face down and took hold of his head. "AAAAHHH!" Kakuzawa shouted in pain and Kouta began to pull violently. Muscles could be hear stretching as Kouta tried to tear the man's head off. After a few seconds with it, there was a snap as Kakuzawa was forcefully decapitated. Kouta held the head up and glared at it in rage, wishing to further continue punishing Kakuzawa.

"Kouta-" Nana tried to approach him and question his sudden outburst of intense violence. When she tried however, Yoshimura stopped her the same way Tsukiyama had stopped Hinami. Nana looked up to the old man to see his kakuja mask was gone, and he was giving her a pained and sorrowful expression.

"Don't, you can't get close to him right now." He told her. Nana gave a confused look up to him. "The transformation into the kakuja form puts the person through a great metnal strain. Given Kouta's past, that can't lead to anything good."

"Wha-what are you saying?" Nana wanted to try and deny it.

"He's saying that isn't Kouta anymore." Shinohara confirmed it. Kouta would only help to prove the point further. He suddenly titled his head back and opened his mouth wide. He fell to his knees and bent over Kakuzawa's headless corpse. He suddenly began eating it, right in front of the others. They all looked in shock at what he had become. Crunching and chewing was heard as Kouta went at the body like an animal. Losing all sense of himself in his new transformation. For all his friends, it hit them hard. None of them wanted to believe it, but it was right in front of them. None of them were as affected by it as Lucy. She knew it was wrong, she knew Kouta was still in there somewhere. She didn't want to believe that this person before them was the same boy she fell in love with all those years ago. The same boy that eventually forgave her for murdering his family, and then begged her to stay with him.

"No... you're wrong!" Lucy suddenly ran ran forward.

"Wait!" Kuro tried to call out to stop her. It was no use. She went about half way between the others and where Kouta now was.

"Kouta..." She called gently. Kouta stopped eating the body and his head popped up. He quickly snapped around and faced her, his single kakugan focused on her. Tension rose as they were all unsure of what he would do. "Do you remember me?" She asked.

"_L-Lu...cy._" He managed to get out, his voice now gargled.

"Yes, that's right." She smiled and took a step closer. Kouta bent down once more and clutched his hands to either side of his head.

"_Father... Kanae..._" He said to himself. Lucy took another cautious step closer.

"Kouta-" He popped his head up and glared at her.

"_Unforgivable!_"

Lucy froze.

Those were the words she never wanted to hear, the ones she was afraid of more than anything. She couldn't bring herself to move as Kouta lunged at her. "_Kill!_" He shouted as he made a pass for her. He swung both of his kagune at her from each side. Lucy was only saved when Bando suddenly jumped in. He grabbed her and rolled out of the way. Both of the centipede kagune passed over his head. He landed with Lucy in his arms a few meters away.

"What are you doing just standing there you idiot?" He cussed at her. Lucy awoke from her trance when she saw Bando had saved her. The same man that not long ago would have killed her one sight now just saved her life.

"Bando? Was all she could manage to say.

"Don't mention it." He knew what she would mean. He let her on her feet and turned back to Kouta. "Hey! You have just officially gone off the deep end!" He yelled to the boy. Kouta laughed, unsettling him and everyone else. Kouta tiled his head back as far as he could to look at Bando. He had a mad man's smile on his face.

"_Bannndo..._" He chimed. "_Let's take a walk on the beach Bando._" He laughed to himself. "_Twist and cut five fingers with pliers. Grab a knife and take his skin. Go on a date to the bookstore and have your insides gently scrambled._" He chimed along as if it were to a tune. "_What's a thousand minus seven, minus seven, minus seven, minus seven, minus seven._"

"Of all the ghouls i've ever seen, this one is by far the craziest." Shinohara commented to the others. He then faced Yoshimura. "Yoshimura, you know what we have to do." The cafe owner gave a pained expression to Kouta, feeling sorry for what the boy had become.

"I can not ask my employees to turn on their friend." He replied. "But I will not stand in the way of what you have to do." He turned to the hole in the wall. "Come, let us leave this to the investigators." Yoshimura began to depart the room. The staff of Anteiku all gave sad looks at Kouta, upset that this is what he had become. They silently walked out of the room, along with Yomo and Tsukiyama. The group of people that had followed Kouta and Lucy followed them. Lucy was the last to leave, looking back as the four investigators prepared to do battle with Kouta. His half revealed faced glared at the investigators. Lucy turned from them and left with the others. When she stepped outside, she heard Yomo begin to speak.

"We should head back and regroup with the others." He suggested.

"I agree." Tsukiyama backed him up. "After all this excitement I-" He was stopped when he was suddenly slammed against the wall of the factory by an unseen force. Lucy shoved him back with her vectors, then approached him and grabbed him by the collar.

"This is all your fault!" She yelled at him. "Why would you do this to Kouta?"

"Me?" He asked in a defensive tone. "Please, this was Kouta's idea. He came to me with it."

"I don't believe you." She shot back. "Kouta would never do such a thing."

"Under normal circumstances you'd be right." He agreed. "However, he overheard a certain someone plotting against you after this was over." He eyed Kurama intently. Kurama looked a little shocked, everyone turning their heads towards him. Lucy glared at him with an intense curiosity.

"You.." She let go of Tsukiyama and faced Kurama.

"But Papa why?" Nana questioned him, feeling a little hurt he was plotting against them.

"I did what I had to." He defended. Suddenly air and dirt from the ground began to circle around Lucy, he powers flaring up.

"I should have killed you from the start." Lucy stated coldly, preparing to attack. With his goggles still on, Kurama could see her vectors starting to come out. He was only saved when Yomo stepped in the way, trying to keep Lucy in control.

"Now is not the time to be fighting amongst ourselves." He told her. "There's nothing that can be done anymore. We need to regroup and aid in the efforts with the rest of our forces." Lucy started to calm down and her vectors powered down.

"Agreed, we should be assisting our forces elsewhere." Kuro agreed. "Let's move." The group of them ran off and spread out to help their forces elsewhere in the city. Only Lucy was left standing there. She turned back to the building and wondered what to do.

* * *

Back inside, the four investigators were going toe to toe with the berserk Kouta. Amon and Shinohara were both engaging him aggressively, trying to keep him busy while two others would attack from each side. Kiyoko and Juuzou both attacked him together with their quinques. Kouta arched his kagune up in the air to block their attacks, then snapping his kagune forward at them to counter-attack. The two investigators side stepped the attack. Mado managed to get an attack in with her bikaku whip. She cracked Kouta in the face from a distance as he was distracted by Kiyoko and Juuzou. Kouta's head snapped back and blood dripped from a slash down his face. It began to quickly heal however, and he made a b-line for Mado. Shinohara tried to stop him, slashing horizontally and spinning around as he tried to slash Kouta. Kouta jumped over his attack, doing a front flip through the air and landing behind Shinohara, just out of his range. Kouta continued on his path to Mado. Amon stepped in to intervene. He blocked Kouta's attempted attack on his partner. Kouta then backed off as quick as a flash and was gone.

"Damn, he's fast." Amon commented as Kouta gained some distance. He ran around the investigators, circling them like a hawk over its prey. He lunged at his aunt next. He brought one of his kagune down overhead. Kiyoko rolled backwards to dodge it. The second one came around to her right. When she got to her feet after rolling she turned the end of her Brynhildr down and blocked the attack. Kouta's now immensely increased strength sent her sliding back a few feet, but she still managed to hold back his attack. While she was held there, Kouta sent his other kaguen he used to strike first to try and strike her from behind. Shinohara jumped in and saved her, blocking the attack with his Demon Yamada and holding the back end of the blade. Kouta tried to scissor the two investigators in but it was no use. He was then hit in the face and below his left ribs with the two knives. Kouta recoiled his attack in response. He looked up on the catwalk to see Juuzou now up there, holding a knife between each finger. He laughed as he threw them with skill and precision at Kouta. Kouta was much faster than before however. His kakuja form gave him enhanced speed and he managed to dodge the the second set thrown at him. Juuzou threw more in front of him which Kouta was able to spin around and dodge.

"Boy, this is fun. I haven't had this much fun trying to hit a moving target in a long time." Juuzou cheered with delight. He tossed all the knives he was holding in one wide barrage of attack. Kouta jumped over them and above the catwalk Juuzou was now on. He brought his kagune down near Juuzou in order to take him down the same way he had done to Kakuzawa. Juuzou was quicker however, and managed to outrun the falling metal catwalk. He held his arms out and laughed as he did so, almost as if it was some sort of game to him. Kouta then amanged to get ahead of Juuzou, and knocked the catwalk out in front of him. Juuzou could do nothing as the part her was on began to fall from under him. The metal fell down faster and soon he was in mid air. He thought he was going to hit the ground and break both of his legs. Instead, there was a quick blur as someone caught him in the air and saved him. The next thing Juuzou knew, he was in Shinohara's arms. Shinohara set the boy back down on his feet.

"That was a close one." Shinohara sighed with relief that Juuzou was alright.

"Special Class Shinohara, you saved me." Juuzou was surprised.

"Of course I did. Someone needs to look out for you out in the field." He smiled down at his partner. Juuzou was surprised by this act of kindness at first, something we not at all familiar with. He gave his partner a warm, heart-felt smile back. They were then reminded that they were currently in the middle of a fight. Kouta came down upon Shinohara and elbowed him on the top of his head. Shinohara gave a brief look of surprise before his eyes rolled back and he fell down face first, knocked out right there. Juuzou's smile vanished as he watched his partner get take down.

"Special Class Shinohara!" Kiyoko yelled as she now rushed in. Kouta sent both centipede kagune at her. She held the blade of her sword sideways to block. Kouta moved in quick to attack with his fists. He punched her in the stomach, stunning her and taking her into the air a bit. He then hit her again with his left hand and sent her even higher, then again with his right once more. He finished his combo with a roundhouse, lifting his right leg high and kicking Kiyoko in the ribs as she was in mid air. She was sent off spiraling and landed against one of the production lines. She was too beaten to get back up. When Kouta was focused on her, Juuzou rushed back in for a sneak attack from behind. He held three knives in each hand and intended to use them, to get back at Kouta for hurting the man that just saved him. When he went in for the kill, Kouta suddenly vanished in a flash. Juuzou was surprised to see Kouta suddenly, vanish and had to time to process that Kouta was now behind him. Kouta hit him from behind with one of his rinkaku and sent Juuzou flying forward. He landed face down farther away.

Mado was more successful with her sneak attack. She stabbed her koukaku sword straight through Kouta below his shoulder. Kouta yelped in pain and held his head back. The wound clsoed up around Mado's sword and she was unable to remove it. Kouta lashed out against her, hitting her with his kagune too. Mado flew threw air and tried to stabilize herself, flipping with it and trying to land on her feet. She landed at an awkward angle however and sprained her ankle. She fell down from the pain and hat to sit down. Kouta went in to finish her off while she was injured. Amon jumped in the way again and pushed him back with his kagune. Kouta slid back a few feet.

"NO!" Amon shouted. "I already lost one partner, I won't lose anyone else!" He stated fearlessly as he was about to engage the kakjua Kouta. Mado was shocked to see him so suddenly defensive. "Mado, you stay back. I'll take care of this." He told her. Amon readied himself and Kouta glared at him. Amon was going to have to take on this powerful, now SS-Rank ghoul all alone. But he had to do it, he had to protect Mado. He would not allow his partner to die in the line of action again while he went on to fight another day. He prepared for an intense battle.

"_Kill..._" Kouta managed to get out. "_I am.. A GHOUL!_" He was about to attack.

Before he could do that, Amon saw Lucy lunge at Kouta. She grabbed him around the neck and tackled him to the ground. Kouta was too late to stop her, and she two of them slid a foot. Lucy was now on top of him, Kouta glared up at her. His two kakuja kagune went above her and were poised to strike from above.

"Lucy!" Amon shouted, trying to get her to move before Kouta killed her. He was about to, his kagune were readied to do it. But something stopped him.

"Stop it!" Lucy pleaded, shaking him and slamming him and slamming him against the ground. "Stop it, stop it, please stop this!" She continued to plead through frantic tears. "No more, no more!"

Kouta's kagune stopped as they were readied above her. They suddenly began to retract and disappear. Amon watched in surprise as Kouta suddenly began to calm down and cease his attack. Kouta's mask began to dissolve, the pupils in his eyes returning. As his mask began to dissolve away, his expression was now a blank stare.

_Is this what it's come to?_ He thought to himself. The vivid memories of him doing the same to Lucy all those years ago ran through his head. Him frantically pleading for her to stop killing, the blood of his sister still on his face. _The two of us switching places in this. Why did it come down to this?_ Lucy continued to beg and cry for him to stop and revert back to his normal self. Kouta reach up with his right arm and pushed her off to his side. She was now sitting next to him, tears still on her face as Kouta began to sit up next to her.

"Kouta?" She asked, wanting to make sure he returned to his normal self.

"Lucy... i'm so sorry." He apologized. "I don't know what came over me. I just wanted to protect everyone, and then..." He suddenly began to choke out sobs. Kouta leaned his head in towards Lucy and rested it on her right shoulder. "Lucy, help me." He cried into her. Tears fell down his face and onto both of them as he began to regret what he had done. Lucy, put her hands around the back of his head and held him like that. Kouta continued to cry into her, the only comfort he could find at the time. Kiyoko started to get back up, and she looked over to the two of them in awe. Lucy had calmed Kouta down, and now he was crying. Amon and Mado just watched them, nothing more they could do to help. The only sound in the room for awhile was Kouta's grief as Lucy held him close.

* * *

A few hours later, and the battle was over. The entire enemy forces all lay dead throughout the city. There was much destruction all through the northern front, but humanity would continue on. Kakuzawa was dead, his army was defeated. Ayato was in CCG custody and would be held in the Ghoul Detention Center in the 23rd Ward. Two armed CCG men were walking him into the back of an armored truck, the sole prisoner of this affair. The doors were closed behind him after he was put inside the truck and it speed off into the early night. Soldiers were still busy and rushing around, trying to get a count of how many were lost, moving the dead, and debriefing their superiors. Kouta was sitting down in parking lot against one of the unmarked SUV's He had a blanket wrapped around him, and Lucy sitting beside him. Kouta reflected on his past decisions, and what to do with his future.

"Hey, there you are." His thoughts were interrupted when Touka approached them. Kouta gave her a pained look, then stared back down at the ground.

"Touka... i'm sorry." He said weakly.

"Hey, don't be like that. We're all just glad you got out of there alive." She told him. "That was a pretty stupid thing for you to do though, you know that?" Kouta didn't answer her.

"Kouta." Yoshimura now approached him too. Kouta looked up to the old coffee shop manager. "We're all just glad safe. Please, don't be too rough on yourself." He told the boy.

"It seems like you had quite and interesting day." Kouta was now greeted by the Tsuneyoshi Washuu, the CCG Chairman. Kouta stood up when he approached. Kotua saw that Shinohara was behind him, a bandage on top of his head.

"Yeah, you could say that." Kouta replied.

"First you enter a battle for the fate of humanity, then you are forced to kill your reanimated sister, then you become a kakuja. Sounds like you've been through quite a lot." Kouta looked down, feeling a bit disheartened.

"I'm really sorry, for everything I did." Kouta apologized.

"What's done is done, the important thing is we won today thanks to you. You have my gratitude, along with the rest of my men." Tsuneyoshi thanked him. "But I have to ask, what will you do now? Will you go back to Kamakura now, or continue to live in the 20th Ward?" Kouta continued to keep his head down for a moment to think. "It is alright if you can not answer, I do not blame you."

"I... I've made up my mind." Kouta spoke up. He looked the Chairman dead in the eye with complete seriousness with what he said next. "I want to join the CCG." This caught the others around him by surprise when he said that. "Because if the CCG is really learning to live and work with ghouls now, then I want to help. I want to use my powers to help people from now on."

"Well now, there was an answer I was not expecting." The Chairman replied. "But if that is what you wish, I see no reason to deny you of that." Kouta smiled at the old man. He then turned aroudn and offered a hand down to Lucy.

"How about it Lucy, will you still stay with me like you promised?" He asked.

"Yes." She reached up and took his hand, using his help to get to to her feet. "I want to come with you. I want to join the CCG too." Kouta smiled at her and she smiled back. The memory of their first meeting warmed both of their hearts in that moment. Now the two of them would become CCg Investigators in order to try an help reform the CCG in order for humans and ghouls to live together.

* * *

Three years later...

Rank 1 Investigator Lucy was standing over the body of ghoul victim in a park. She was currently dressed in black business attire with a black trench coat over it. The victim was a woman in her early 20s, she had her torso removed, leaving only her limbs and head. A sight that would make even a few investigator's stomachs churn, but not Lucy. She had grown up with this kind of violence, it was nothing new to her. Even when she started working as a Rank 3 Investigator after joining with Kouta she was unflinching at the levels of brutality she had seen. There was definitely a change from a few years ago too. More and more ghouls were being brought in alive or rehabilitated and taught how to live peacefully with humans. the 20th ward was still the safest spot, having a ghoul attack rate of 0% now. That ward was now considered a safe haven for ghouls trying to blend into human life, and a large number of them moved in after the battle three years ago. Lucy and Kouta still lived there, but in their own apartment now. The others had went their separate ways after the battle. Nana moved back in with the others at Maple Inn, explaining that Kouta and Lucy were staying in Tokyo to further help out. Kurama and Mariko moved into a house together in Kamakura. After all those years he would finally be the father to her that she deserved. Bando became a freelance mercenary, working for all sorts of people all over the world. No one knew what happened to Kuro after the battle. She rejoined the rest of the forces at Saseba and nothing more was heard on that front. Kouta and Lucy would often visit their friends at Anteiku, keeping close with them. For the first week of every June, the two of them would go down to visit everyone at Maple House, stayign there for that week. It was the one week where they all felt like a family shared stories, laughed, and all had a good time.

But now Lucy was out where the cruel reality of the world was facing her. A this was the 5th victim that had been torn apart in such a manner. meaning there was another feral ghoul loose somewhere in the city.

"Another one huh?" Lucy looked to her right to see her partner, First Class Kouta standing next to her. He was dressed in a dark blue suit, with a beige trench coat open overtop of that. The natural dark brown color in his hair had fully returned now and he was a bit taller than he was three years ago.

"Yeah, this makes the fifth victim to be torn up this way." She told him.

"The Torso ghoul. He's becoming quite a problem."

"First Class, Rank 1!" They heard a voice call from behind. Rank 3 Tooru Mutsuki came running up to them. He was a Quinx, and human-ghoul hybrid created in the CCG's lab. Kouta and Lucy served as mentors to Quinx Squad, and had become close with the whole squad.

"Hmm, what is it Tooru?" Kouta asked. Tooru needed a moment to catch his breath.

"It's Rank 3 Urie sir, he and Rank 3 Shirazu believe they have found Torso and are in hot pursuit." Tooru reported in. Kouta sighed.

"Those two again? I guess we better go help them out." Kouta replied with a sense of irritation. He began to walk off as Tooru ran away to the car they arrivied in. Lucy took one last look at the victim.

_Hypocrite!_ Her inner voice cursed her. It was something she had not heard in a long time. _You know you're only helping humans who hunt down what they consider monsters. Just like they did to you._

_I know that._ She respond within her own mind. _I've even experienced they brutality humans have inflected upon such kind. But I want to help Kouta, so i'm content here. It's not a perfect dream, but it's my place in this world._ She looked down at the small metal band on her ring finger. Lucy then turned away from the scene to join her fiancee and Rank 3 Mutsuki to go aid Q Squad in the Torso investigation.


End file.
